Send Me An Angel
by ASimplyHopelessRomantic
Summary: After a gay-bashing that changes his life forever, Kurt vows to never sing again. That is, until he meets Blaine Anderson, who will not only help Kurt regain his faith, but find who he is truly meant to be.
1. Chapter 1

Hello all my readers! It is I, Em, coming to you once again with a glee fic. Now thoughs of you who read/reading Gimme More, I just wanna point out this is a Klaine fic. A full on, 100%, Klainie, Klaine Klaine fic. Okay, maybe 90% Klaine. 10% is used for friendships, family, and Kurtofsky. I came up with this fic after watching an episode of Cold Case (Who's Your Daddy) and listening to Scorpions "Send Me An Angel" about twenty times. I hope you all enjoy this! It IS unbeta-ed, because my evil beta is still in Germany, though I don't think its too bad. I am looking for a beta until she returns, so if you're up for it, I'd love to work with you.

Enjoy!

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><p>The sun was beginning to set over Lima, Ohio, but the young Kurt Hummel had no intention of heading home just yet. He had been lying in that field for sometime; it was one of his favorite places to go when he wanted to be alone. It was big, and open, and perfectly quiet.<p>

And quiet was exactly what he needed. No words of encouragement or sympathy. No one trying to get his mind off it or help him not think about it at all. After all, it wasn't just something you could forget about it with ease. Act like it never happened and move on with your life. Yeah, just that easy.

Nothing in Kurt Hummel's life was easy; not anymore anyway. Before, it was almost perfect.

He had a great family. He had always been close with his dad, and after they lost his mom, their bond strengthen. Burt was the towns mechanic and probably the most understanding man in the entire world. He loved his son more than anything. His heart broken twice as hard when he heard the news. Along did his step mom's and step brother's.

He had friends. He and Finn we're more than friends, they were brothers; whether it was by marriage or not, they were family. Rachel and Mercedes were his best friends. They were like the three musketeers, but who sang instead of got into sword fights. And then there was Mike, Tina, and. Artie. Santana, Brittany, and Quinn. Puck, Lauren, and Sam. They were like an army; one that was crushed so easily.

He had a boyfriend. At the time, he was the only known gay guy in school, and of course he hell head over heels for the football player. He never thought it be possible, to get so lucky, but he did. He and Dave we're an item; a powerful one. He'd never been so happy; he thought he was indestructible. That all changed, of course. Along with everything else.

And he had a voice. An incredible, angelic one that could make people cry as it floated up to the heavens. He was mocked for it, of course, due to him being a boy and being able to hit a high F; but Kurt didn't care. He knew he had a gift like no other, and he used it to his greatest advantage.

He was a dreamer that was gonna go somewhere. And then in a snap, it was all gone. He had nightmares about it for so long; they come back from time to time, but at least its not every night.

Kurt lost a lot of things after that night. He lost his friends, his trust in people. He lost his boyfriend, and the belief that there is good in people. He lost his faith and his will to fight. And worst of all, he lost his ability to stand up for who he is and he lost the will to use his voice the way he did before.

Standing from the ground, Kurt ran his hands down his body, dusting himself off. Taking one last look at the falling sun, he turned back and began his way home.

Kurt Hummel is no longer the bubbly sassy who'd sing like no one could. He wasn't that head strong young man who didn't care about what people thought. And he wasn't the person to forgive and forget.

Everything changed for Kurt Hummel that night, which began with a bat against a headlight of a car.


	2. Chapter 2

Second chapter! I hope all those reading it are enjoying it and feel free to review! I know its still pretty short and isn't really going anywhere yet, but I swear it will progress.

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt stared up at his bedroom ceiling; it was a pasty cream white. He intended to paint it could white, and then add a small chandelier, but those were just two more things on the Kurt Hummel I-Wanna-Do-But-I-Never-Will list.<p>

He heard them calling for him, but he made no movement. He didn't want to go out today. It was a bad day. He woke up from another nightmare and couldn't go back to sleep. All he wanted to do was stay home and relax.

Sadly, Finn had other plans. Barging through the door, the Frankenstein teenager threw himself on top of his brother, laughing.

"Lets go! We called you like twenty times."

"Get off me!" Kurt struggled to breathe. Finn was almost twice his size and weight, and having pelted himself on top of Kurt wasn't exactly great for his lungs. Kurt breathed deeply as the taller boy picked himself up and leant against his dresser. "I'm ill. I can't go today."

"Come on, man. We're been waiting for this day all summer; don't bum out on us now."

"No one bumming out on us." Burt announces as he appears in the doorway. "You sick?"

"Mentally." Kurt mutters.

"Well, so is the rest of this family." He states. "It took a lot of work getting those tickets, and I intend on having the whole family go. Sick or not. Not get dressed. Oh! And don't forget your swim trunks."

Burt retreated the room, taking Finn with him. He wasn't normally so persist on making Kurt do things, but he knows his son hasn't go out in a while, and whether he's a doctor or a mechanic, he knows that isn't good for a person. So whether Kurt liked or not, he was gonna go out and be around people.

Kurt, of course, _didn't_ like it.

Sitting up, Kurt reluctantly went to get ready. It used to take him almost an hour for him to be presentable, now its mere minutes. He barely uses those facial creams and exfoliates; at least not regularly. His hair is longer than before; though it works worst due to him not using any gel or hairspray to keep it up.

But he likes it this long. Not because it fits his face well, but it hides the one physical scar that just doesn't seem to wanna go away. Finn joked, trying to lighten to mood, and tell him it was like that scar of that wizard book he likes so much. Kurt smiled at his childishness, but it didn't make him feel any better.

Kurt looked into the mirror and sighed. He was thin and lanky in his eyes, with pale skin and a small scar hidden by his hair on the left side of his forehead. He touched the scar gently, and the events of that night slowly took over his mind.

The screaming, the lights of the car; the names he and Dave were called, and the darkness that over took him after the final blow.

Kurt shook his head, forcing the memories out, banishing them. Leaving the bathroom he dressed quickly. He still had his fashion sense, but he cut his choices down some. His outfits were usually black, white, or gray; though still all name brand designers. He thought it would be better to die down the flamboyant-ness; no more Gaga inspired outfits or anything that screams "Hey! Look at me! Look at me!"

The attention he got for his clothes used to his Kurt butterflies. He was always a fashionable young man. Now he'd rather just be in and out of life, not really caring if he was noticed or not.

Grabbing his town and swim suit, he tossed it into his shoulder bag and headed upstairs. His family was waiting outside by the car. Finn and Rachel, who were very rarely apart nowadays, were laughing about something, and Carole was packing the rest of the things into the back of the truck.

"Alright!" Burt calls. "Lets hit the road!"

"Six Flags here we come!" Finn shouts as the family pile into the truck.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello readers! I hope you are all enjoying this! Its a slow process, but I'm liking it. Please feel free to review and tell me what you think. Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>The one thing Kurt could always count on whenever they went to Six Flags was the amount of people that showed up there each summer. Hundreds and hundreds crowding around in the hot air, just to stand on extremely long lines for X foot high roller coasters, eat expensive, fatty foods, and play cheesy games that cheat for dorky prices.<p>

It was really the crowd of people that got to Kurt the most. He always felt people were staring at like, like they knew, even though it was fairly obvious they weren't and didn't.

"What should we do first?" Rachel asks as they stroll through the park.

"I wanna check out Kingda Ka," Finn says aloud. "They say it's the scariest ride here."

"I thought we were going to the water park first?" Carole questions.

"We should ride first, then get wet. Eat something and go check out the exhibits so our stomachs can cool down, and then go back on the rides." Rachel explains, always being the logical one.

"Alright, how about this? You three go wherever you want. Mom and I will go to the Boardwalk. We'll meet up at the food court in about two-three hours, and then we'll check out the zoo. Sound good?" Finn and Rachel nod, while Kurt stands quietly in the background. "Good. Now go have fun."

"Be careful!" Carole orders before they separate.

"Come on, I wanna get on the line earlier." Says Finn.

"Actually, I think I'll skip this one out." Kurt tells his brother. "I wanna look around a bit. Check out the scenery."

"Alright. I guess that's cool. You can meet up with us later."

"Sounds good." Kurt was just about to walk away when Finn called to him.

"You and me, Nitro later. Kay?"

"Got it." He called back and then went out on his own.

Wanting to take a stroll down memory lane, Kurt headed down to the children's area. His mind went back to when he was little and would run for all the different character rides. He loved the tea cups, and carousel, and the games where you have to knock down the milk bottles with a ball or make the balloon pop while shooting water from a gun.

Kurt smiled sadly; he missed his innocence.

Caught in the middle of Looney Tunes Seaport, Kurt heard music playing. It wasn't the game music or even the radio; though he did recognize it to be a Katy Perry song.

_Acapella?_ He questioned, and decided to check it out. Sliding between people to get a better look, Kurt found it to be five young men dressed as milk men; one of the many skits they have going on in the park, though this was one of the smaller ones.

The outer left was white, tall, and blonde, while the other right was white, brunette and only a few inches shorter than the with blonde. The one on the inner left was a black man, who was tall and lanky, but had very good rhythm. The one on the inner right was Asian who had a slight build and a little less rhythm. And the one in the middle, he was white and the shortest of the group. He wasn't the greatest dancer, but it was easy to see it was his voice they counted on him for instead of his moves, because that was far superior than any of the others.

They were singing "Teenage Dream" by Katy Perry and singing it well; it was without a doubt one of the best renditions Kurt has ever heard.

"Kurt!" Kurt turned to see Rachel and Finn in the crowd, dancing along. "Aren't they great?" She gushes. "It reminds me of Glee club!"

Kurt wanted to say something, probably remind her that he's no longer in Glee, but lost the chance when the group jumped off the small stage and started walking around the crowd. They was handing something out to several people, but Kurt couldn't see what exactly. The lead was playing around with the crowd, getting them into the song. He hip-bumped a woman and did the running man with a young boy.

When they got over to Kurt and the others, he smiled greatly, touching Rachel's chin flirtatiously. Fortunately, before Finn could react, the young man turned towards Kurt, and winked, tossing him one of the special prizes before running back onto the stage to belt out a note.

"What is it?" Asked Rachel.

Looking down at the item in his hand, Kurt noticed it was a small plastic coin with an old fashioned glass milk cup on it, while on the reverse side, had the letter B. Hearing the final verse, Kurt looked back up to see the milk men get back into their stance and finish the song off. The crowd clapped and cheered as the young men bowed and high five.

"Thank you all so much, you're a great group of people!" The lead said to the crowd. "We're the Warblers and can we get some noise!" The crowd shouted and clapped, while most children giggled and yelled. The lead singer leaned back, drinking from the same glass milk carton from the coin. "Hmm, that's good. Everyone loves milk and there's nothing like a nice cold on pumped straight from the cow, right boys? Well, those of who were given our special milk coins, we'll we'd like to like to invite you backstage for a special surprise. To the rest of you, have an awesome day!"

"That's you Kurt!" Finn announced as the crowd began to break.

"Go on! We'll wait here for you."

"Yeah! You can ride El Toro with us."

Taking a deep breathe, Kurt followed the small group that was going into the back. There he noticed it was mostly pretty teenage girls that got chosen and little kids. He was the only male, which of course, made him feel incredibly shy and awkward.

"Hi!" Kurt nearly jumped as the blonde from the outer left popped up. "I'm Jeff."

"Um," Kurt motions awkwardly to his coin. Jeff takes it and flips it over, smiling even brighter than he was before.

"You can go right to the guy over there." He tells him, handing the coin back over, and looking to where he was meant to go. Jeff had pointed in the direction of the lead, the one who gave him the coin.

"Hi." He says awkwardly, getting the guys attention. "The blonde one - Jeff - told me to come over here." He holds out the coin.

The lead, who was actually very good looking, Kurt noticed, realizing now he can focus on everything else aside from his voice, pulled off his milk man hat, reveling his dark, slightly curly hair, which was now mixed with sweat and gel, tossed it aside, and took the coin.

"Let's see, what shall your prize me" He mused aloud. "Balloon animal? Nah, that's kid stuff. Stuffed Tasmanian devil? No. You don't look like the Mardi Gras bead or giant colorful sun glass type guy."

"Oh?"

"I got it!" He said brightly. Turning around, he flipped one of the black trunks open and began to ruffle through it until he found what he wanted. "Here we go. Perfect!"

Reaching out, Kurt took the stuffed toy from it. It was a medium sized yellow bird; almost like what you'd see in Angry Birds, but more realistic looking.

"Oh. Its adorable."

"It's a Warbler; they're pretty rare." He explains.

"Well, thank you. I'll treasure it forever.

"He's got a name; hope you don't mind."

"Oh? And what would that be?"

"Its uh . . . its Pavarotti." Kurt cocked his head, wondering. "Yeah. I was thinking more like Tim, but he was just like 'nah! Name me this' and I was like 'oh man, you can talk?'"

Kurt found himself laughing as the sheer silliness. "Pavarotti. I think it fits him."

Smiling kindly, the young man extended his hand to shake. "I'm Blaine."

"Kurt." He says.

"So, you on vacation with your family?"

"Something like that," Kurt states. "Just think thing we do every summer; mostly so my brother can ride all the fast rides and barf into a garbage all in one day. It's a real time saver."

Blaine laughes and Kurt feels an ounce less shy. But before he can lose anymore, he does what any normal person would do: bail.

"Well, you guys were great,"

"Oh, thank you. We practice a lot and these guys are awesome."

"The show was amazing and thank you so much for Pav, but I best be going."

"Oh, well maybe I'll see you around the park?"

"Sure. Maybe." Kurt jokes before walking through the exit.

Finn and Rachel are waiting for him when he gets back to the front. He shows them Pavarotti and they head off to the next ride. And along the day Kurt tries to ignore all thoughts of Blaine, his singing, or his amazing voice in general.


	4. Chapter 4

Hey everyone! I hope those of you who are reading SMAA are enjoying it! Here's chapter four.

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>"Honestly, Rachel, what were you thinking!"<p>

Kurt stood with hands on his hips, watching his step brother hold his girlfriends hair back as she vomited repeatedly into a black trash can. They had just gotten off Skull Mountain when her small body couldn't hold anything in anymore.

"I don't understand how that little frame could contain two corndogs, a box of popcorn, a coke, and a bag of cotton candy in the first place!"

"I was trying to keep up with Finn." Rachel explains miserably, wiping her mouth on the back of her hand.

Finn pulled her close, rubbing her back. "No more coasters for you today."

Rachel shook her head in protest. "I'll be fine. I'm sure there's nothing more to give, so no more throwing up."

"Good. Great. Can we get going now?" Kurt asked hastily.

"Someone's excited to go on the tea cups." Finn teases, taking Rachel's hand.

_The sooner we meet Carole and dad, the sooner we get go home_. Kurt thought to himself. "And the sooner the better." he said allowed.

Kurt turned on his heel, but only took about three steps before bumping onto someone. There was a small crash of a soda falling to the ground and the sound of men laughing and "awe-ing".

"Crap! I am so sorry." Kurt apologizes.

"Nah, it was my fault." Kurt looked to the voice and found a familiar crop of curls. "Well, we meet again." Blaine says joyfully.

Kurt said nothing as his lips slowly curled into a small smile.

"Hey, you're the milk men! You guys rock!" Finn states, a wide grin across his face.

Blaine steps forward, shaking his hand. "Its nice to meet a fan." He laughes. "I'm Blaine. This is Jeff, Nick, David, and Wes."

"You were truly fantastic; especially for an acapella group." Rachel pipes in.

"Again, thank you. You guys enjoying your day here?"

"Aside from a little stomach mishap," Finn nods to Rachel. "its going great."

"Happens to me all the time." Jeff, the blonde one, offers, patting his stomach.

"Ditto." Nick, the brunette, enters.

Blaine, who except for when speaking to Finn, continued to look at Kurt. "How about you?" He asks. "Are you having fun?"

Kurt leaned back on his head, smirking. "Oh, I'm having an _amazing_ time." He says drolly.

"Have you been on the Green Lantern yet?" Wes, the Asian one, asks.

Finn shakes his head. "Care to come along? More the merrier." David, the black on, invites.

Finn looked to Rachel. "You sure you'll be alright?" Rachel nods shortly, taking his hand. "We're in."

"I'm not." Says Kurt. "I've been on enough rough rides today, thank you very much."

"Suit yourself." Finn shrugs. "Don't forget to meet mom and Burt at the food court in an hour and half."

"You got it."

"Coming Blaine?" Wes questions as they make their departure?

"Nah, you go on ahead. I think I'll sit this one out." Kurt and Blaine stand in silence until the group is gone. Blaine keeps his eyes on Kurt, while Kurt looks every which way to avoid Blaine. "Care you walk around the park with me? I can give you a tour."

"I know the park quite well, thank you."

"Well then, mind giving me a tour then?" Blaine suggest, laughing airily. "Come on, I won't bite."

Kurt sighs. Blaine didn't seem too bad, and he'd keep Kurt from moping. "Alright. Why not?"

Blaine mockingly fist pumps as he and Kurt step into stride as they go around the park.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey guys. Sorry its still so short. I promise the length will grow as times goes on. Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt had to admit that hanging out with Blaine wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. They went from location to location, playing games and talking. They rode no rides, though Blaine didn't seem to mind much. They spoke about their interest, their jobs, and just their lives in general.<p>

Blaine did most of the talking. After all, this was someone he had just met, there was no way Kurt was gonna blurt out his entire life story. To be totally honest, Kurt thought Blaine would've cut the cord a long time ago. He barely said a word, which must've made him boring as hell, yet Blaine continued to chat and ask questions.

By the time they reached the food court, Blaine had nearly spilled his entire Six Flags experience; which captioned his first nerve racking performance to the first time someone threw up on him after going on the rollercoaster.

"Sorry to just throw that all on you," Blaine apologized. "I'm not a very closed-minded person, so I tend to talk to people about basically whatever."

"Please, its fine. I rather enjoy listening. It was nice to talk about something over than sports and cars." Kurt told him as he searched for his family. Spotting them, he turned back to Blaine. "Well, that's my crew. I better hit the road before they charge us."

"Wait," Blaine placed a hand on Kurt's forearm, pulling him back before he could get too far. Kurt started at the hand in a mixture of shock and alarm. He wasn't one who liked to be touched. "Sorry," Blaine released his arm. "I just want to know . . . Can I have your number?"

"Why?" Kurt asked dumbly.

Blaine blushed slowly. "Well, I like talking to you. So, if figured maybe we could talk again?"

Kurt thought about this for a moment. Talking was always his biggest fear, but with Blaine, it didn't seem half bad. Best part: Blaine had no idea what was going on inside Kurt's head, and had no intention on finding out.

"Okay. Yeah, sure." Pulling out their phones, the young men swapped, exchanging numbers.

Handing his phone back, Blaine smiled brightly at Kurt. "Thanks. Guess I'll see you around." He said before heading out.

Slipping his phone back into his pocket, Kurt made his way to his family. Both women were sitting at the table, their faces place and green.

"What happened to them?" Kurt asked.

"Rachel got sick on another ride, and mom got food poisoning." Finn explained.

"Looks like we're gonna have to head home a bit early. Sorry guys."

Finn sighed disappointingly as he helped Rachel to her feet. Kurt, who wasn't as unhappy as Finn, followed the two couples out of the park. Half way to the car, Kurt's pocket began to shake and giggle. Pulling his phone out, Kurt saw he had one new text.

**Blaine A.**

_**Maybe next time I could be the one listening and you the one talkin?**_

Kurt shut his phone and got into the car without answering the message. He could deal with being an awesome listener, but he had no intention whatsoever to become the talker.


	6. Chapter 6

Hey guys! Sorry it took so long. I kinda lost my path for a mintue. I think I got it back, though!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>It had been over two weeks since the HummelHudson plus Berry family set foot into Six Flags, and the last time Kurt physically had spoken to Blaine. They spoke via text every once and a while; Blaine always being the one to start. They were small conversations; only lasting about six or seven texts each. Whether it was about the weather or Blaine telling a joke or really about just anything at all.

Blaine called him once, but Kurt missed it. Finn and Puck were having an argument over who was better, Neil Diamond or Billy Joel. Just wanting them to shut up, he picked the latter, not caring who was actually better than who. Anyway, when he returned to his room, he saw he had one missed message. He meant to get back to him, but time got away and he never did.

Now here he was; sweaty and greasy, working for extra cash in his dad's auto garage, fixing up broken bumpers and doing oil changes. It was easy work and kept him busy. And busy was good for Kurt. He kept him from boredom and kept him from thinking. And thinking wasn't exactly the best idea nowadays.

"Kurt!" His father's words broke into his concentration, causing him to accidentally spray paint onto his overalls. He had been assigned to take over on painting over a new design since Dale, the lead painter of his dad's workers, called out on account of his wife having their second baby. Sighing, he looked up. "Mercedes called for you."

Kurt turned away, going back to work. This wasn't anything new. Mercedes, Tina, Brittany. Tons of people called for him. Sometimes he's called back and they'd make plans to go out, but he never did.

"I'll call her back later," Kurt said as he placed the clothes back over his face and began to re-spray the paint over the design stencil.

Burt would normally see this through; wanting his son to keep up to date with his friends stop being such a homebody. He would've said something, but his attention was taken away by a group of young men pulling into the body shop.

Taking his oil stained rage which huge from his shoulder, Burt whipped his hands clean and walked over.

"Welcome to Hummel's Tires and Lube, how can we be of service?"

The shorter of the three men stepped up, a look of distress playing across his face. "Yeah, hi. Um . . . I guess there's no easy way to say this. A group of guys basically beat the living . . . Or non-living since it's a car . . . Snot out of my car. I've been all over, but they keep sending me elsewhere. This car is my only way to get around, and my job is kind of a hike, so I really, really need it cleaned up and fast. I will pay whatever you want me to, at this point I'm so desperate, I don't care if I get ripped off. Will you please just _help_ me?"

Burt stepped forward, placing a comforting hand on the man's shoulder. "Hey, its gonna be alright, okay? Let's just check out the damage and we'll see what we can do." Walking over to the car, Burt saw that the man wasn't fretting over nothing. Aside from the back window being smashed in, the sides had been keyed and dented, and all four tires slashed. Both license plates had been ripped off and head lights practically melted from being burned by something. "Well, I ain't gonna lie: its not pretty. With the repairs and paint jobs, and with any internal problems, it could cost you a grand or two, but I'll have to check up on it. You'll also need new plates, but you can order them here and get half off."

The young man stepped up, a hopeful gaze flashing. "Honestly, the cost isn't a problem. As long as it gets done soon, I'll pay almost anything."

"Well, hold your horses there. I've never cheated a customer and I'm gonna start now. I'll get my men to start straight away, and I should have the price by the end of the week."

"Seriously? Oh my God, thank you! God, you have no idea how rad you are. Thank you so much!"

Burt lifted a hand, silencing him. "Thank me when your car is back to life. Mercedes-Benz?" He asked, glancing once last time at the broken wreck.

"Two-thousand and nine CSL-Class Coupe." Blaine stated.

Burt winced. "Ouch. Nice brand too. I'll get my best guy on it now." Leaving the three men up front, Burt returned to the back to find Kurt cleaning up after his paint job. "Hey, Kurt, there's a kid up front with a garbage disposal of a car. I'm gonna go get Gary and Rex to start on the body work; mind starting the paper work for me?"

Tossing his rage onto the counter, Kurt ran his still damp hands down his overalls. "Yeah, no problem." After grabbing the clip board and pen from Burt's desk, Kurt went to the front. "Alright, I need the owner's name and phone num…ber."

Kurt's words died in his throat as he saw who the car belonged to. It was a rare chance of this happening, probably one out of a million, but it was happening.

"Kurt?" Blaine breathed.

Kurt almost blushed at the sight of Blaine. He was wearing normal every-day clothes again, and his hair was un-gelled and curly. Behind him were Wes and David, who had stopped checking out the car once they heard their friend speak his name.

"You work here?" Blaine asked.

"My dad is the owner." Kurt replied dumbly. "This is your car?"

Blaine bit his lip, running his hand over the back of his neck. "Ahh yeah. Aren't I lucky?"

Kurt laughed awkwardly. _Aren't we all?_


	7. Chapter 7

I am so, so sorry for the long wait! I'm having a lot of issues with this story, a lot of blockage. I hope to get that finished with soon. Nevertheless, enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt cleared his throat, doing his best to avoid the brown eyes that seemed to pierce into his mind from only five feet away. All he had to do was get the paperwork done and then he could go on his merry way; which, in plain English, was him hiding out in the back room until Blaine and the others finally left. He couldn't explain it, but something about being around Blaine made Kurt very nervous.<p>

"So, I need your full name." Kurt said.

"Well, you already know my name." Blaine answered.

"First name: Blaine. Middle and last?"

"Middle: Cameron. Last: Anderson. Age: twenty years. Blood type: A positive. Natural eye color: a slight darkish, muddy brown. Natural hair color: Medium brown. Nationality: Well, I'm kinda a mutt-"

"Okay! Okay! Stop!" Kurt chanted, looking up from the clip board. "What are you doing?"

"Giving you my information." Blaine said innocently.

"I needed your name, not your entire life story." Kurt sighs, going back to his work. "How long have you had the car for?"

Blaine stalls, counting the years. "About four? I brought it when it first went on the market. It was the first thing I ever really brought on my own."

"I'm sorry for your loss." Kurt said honestly. "Okay, I just need your phone number and we're all done here."

"You have my number," Blaine reminded him. Kurt blushed, having forgotten that small detail. "Were you ever gonna give it a call?"

Kurt looked all around, refusing to share the same glance. "Well, I've been a little busy, as you can see. You'd be surprised by how many broken up pieces of junk we have come in there on a daily basis." Kurt stopped and reread his words in his mind. Counting on Blaine's reaction, he realized his mistake. "Not that your car is a piece of junk! No! No, no! It's . . . It's totally awesome. With a little paint and buffing, it'll look good as new."

"Chill, Kurt." Blaine eased. "Its fine. For the moment, it is a piece of junk. Hopefully your dad will make it not so, soon."

"I should actually go check on that." Kurt stated. "My dad will be out in a little while to give you the details on how it's gonna be."

"See you around," Blaine sighed, looking at his fallen silver angel.

Turning on his heel, Kurt left for the back. Before handing the paperwork onto Burt, Kurt took his cell phone from his locker, scrolled down to Blaine's name, and jotted down his number onto the sheet.

Just as he expected, the work was going to take a little more time. Parts had to be ordered and shipped; the paint needed to be brought. Who knew if there were any internal oil bleeding. It would take longer than originally thought; but Burt was hopeful. He had his best guys working on it, and also assigned Finn and Kurt to do the easy jobs.

"Looks like we will be seeing a lot of each other." Blaine said optimistically.

Kurt smiled, wanting to show the enjoyment of the news, but it didn't work out well. He was never a good smiling liar.


	8. Chapter 8

Thank y'all for reading this, it means a lot to me. Feel free to comment and tell me what you think!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt sighed heavily as he wheeled out from under the coupe. Originally, Finn was supposed to be doing the dirty work, while Kurt handed all the paperwork. That was the plan, until something came up with Rachel and her dad's, and Finn was given permission from Burt to switch days, and work on helping Rex and the others putting the car together when the parts arrived.<p>

It wasn't that big of a deal, really. Kurt knew what to do and the work wasn't too hard. It was the part about getting all dirty and greasy that he didn't like. The overalls he didn't really care about, it was the rest of him he was worried about. Whether he worried about his complexion or hair anymore wasn't apart of him; Kurt has never and will never enjoy getting grease all over his face and hair.

The final thing Kurt wasn't happy about was that the owner of the car was always around. Whether it's just an hour or two or from open to close, Blaine was there. He was like a parent hanging out in the waiting room for his child at the local hospital. Kurt found it somewhat endearing, while the rest of him was waiting for him to just go away.

"Alright," Kurt breathed as he jotted everything down onto the clipboard. "There's no internal bleeding, the gas tank is fine, and your breaks are all in check, so it looks like all the damage was down on the outside."

"Is that good or bad?" Blaine asked.

Kurt thought about it for moment. "Both."

Blaine moaned, running his hands through his hair. "I guess it couldn't been worse. At least its drivable. Well, eventually it will be."

Kurt popped the hood, wanting to double check the engine. Burt said it was perfect, but it never hurt to check again. Besides, he might as well clean it; nothing annoyed Kurt more about car's was a dirty engine.

"Hey, you have my dad and his entire team working on this thing. Give it a week and you'll be back on the road, riding pretty."

Blaine smiled, leaning against the side of the car, watching Kurt has he did his work. Kurt found himself getting nervous, but his it well.

"What are you doing Friday night?" He asked smoothly.

"Um . . . I'm not sure." Kurt said slowly.

"Come to the movies with me." Kurt sat up quickly, slamming the back of his head against the hood. He winced loud, rubbing the spot with his hand. Walking to the sink, Kurt washed his hands, keeping his black to Blaine. "The guys thought it would be a great way to cheer me up or something. You're more than welcome to join us."

"That sounds great, really. But I'm gonna be busy here. Finn usually has his video game night, and I gotta be there to break it up. Its just . . . not a good night."

"How about Saturday?"

Kurt eased back on his heels, biting his soft red lip. "Really, its just not a food time. I'm gonna be busy . . . This entire week. Its just . . . Not really possible."

Blaine looked down to his feet, looking almost shy. "You don't like me very much, do you?"

Kurt's eyes widened, guilt flowing over his. "What? No! No, it's not that!"

Blaine lifted his hand, a sad, half-smiled, broke across his lips. "Really, its fine. I can be pretty persistent sometimes; it can be pretty annoying." Kurt opened his mouth to say something, but Blaine stopped him. "I gotta head out. Tell your dad I'll check the car out sometime tomorrow."

Kurt watched in awe and Blaine headed out the door. Cursing himself, Kurt followed. "Blaine!" Blaine turned at the sound of his voice. "When and where?"

Smiling brightly, Blaine gave him the answer. "The Regal Cinema in town, eight o'clock."

"I'll be there." Kurt tells him.

Blaine left the shop smiling, while Kurt stayed behind, wondering what he just got himself into.


	9. Chapter 9

My writer's block is still there, but I'm making an effort to change that. Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p><em>It's not a date<em>, Kurt repeated in his head for the two-hundred and tenth time that day. He knew it wasn't going to be anything special. Blaine was just trying to be friendly and invited him along. His Warbler friends would be there, so it isn't gonna be some one-on-one type deal. Knowing his luck, they guys would be so absorbed by each other, they'd totally forget he was there. _Maybe I can sneak out early?_ Kurt pondered.

Kurt couldn't shake his nervousness no matter how hard he tried. It was beyond obvious it wasn't a date, and even if Blaine was gay, Kurt wouldn't say no. Sure, he was handsome, and dapper, and talented, and an all around nice guy, but Kurt was over that. Going on dates wasn't a part of Kurt anymore. Maybe it was the fact he was actually going out in public without his brother? Kurt used to go out every night a week, but nowadays, seeing him after the sun went is like seeing the ghost of the Titanic while out fishing in the Atlantic.

Another thing that caught Kurt up in his whirl wind of thoughts was maybe that this was all a joke? That Blaine and his friends realized he was gay and they were gonna mess with him. After all, Kurt wasn't exactly the straightest looking/sounding person on the planet. Sure, Mercedes got it wrong, but that girl's gay-dar is more off than Rachel's fashion sense.

Blaine didn't seem like the type to be homophobic, but then again, you never really know. Part of him wanted to forget about the whole thing, but Kurt knew there was no backing out. That's what got him into this mess in the first place; either way, he had to go.

Taking a deep breath, he walked into the movie theater, and stood awkwardly as he looked around for the others. His heart began to race when there was no sign of them, but it calmed suddenly at the sound of Blaine's boyish laughter. He stood in a circle with the others, who were also laughing. The blonde one, Jeff, noticed Kurt first, and notified Blaine.

With a smile on his face, Blaine left the group, meeting Kurt in the middle.

"Hey! You made it."

"Yeah, I did." Kurt replied, smiling as well.

The rest of the gang found their way over; Kurt hadn't remembered the last time he saw someone smiling or purely. Like it was a way of nature.

"Please to see you again, Kurt." Wes nodded.

"Glad you could join us." David agreed.

"Thank you for having me," Kurt rolled on the balls of his feet, trying to stay cool. "So, what movie are we seeing?"

"We thought it would be a tough decisions," Nick stated.

"But as soon as we got here our minds were set." Jeff finished.

Kurt remained silently, waiting for them to say the title. When they did, it was in unison. "Harry Potter." Kurt laughed, finding it quite endearing.

"You are a HP fan, right? Cause if you're not, its gonna be pretty awkward."

"And we will be fanboying. I mean, Hermione is pretty hot and stuff. And Alan Rickman is the shit."

"Oh, don't worry, I am! I own the books and everything."

Blaine smiled proudly. "Splendid! Lets go then." Reaching into his pocket, Blaine grabbed two tickets, and handed one to Kurt. "Here you go."

"Hmm? Blaine, you didn't - I can buy my own ticket."

Blaine laughed, his eyes widened. "Chill out, guy. No one said you couldn't buy anything. This is from me to you; for helping fix up my car and for being with me being an obsessive idiot."

"It was nothing, really. Please, lemme pay you back."

Kurt reached for his wallet, but Blaine stopped him. "Seriously, Kurt. It's nothing." Pulling his arm, Kurt sighed. There was no fighting with Blaine, apparently. "Come on, let's go before the good seats are taken."

Keeping his head low, Kurt followed Blaine and the others into the theater.


	10. Chapter 10

Hey, guys! My writers block is getting better, which means the story is flowing. Hope you enjoy it!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>This as definitely going to be a night Kurt would never forget. Not because he was a total HP fan and the final movie was beyond epic, but because of the people he was with. Even though they were all from different, high-power, upper-class type colleges (NYU for David, Yale for Wes), and with Jeff and Nick being seniors in private school, they were just normal young adults.<p>

They checked out girls, cracked jokes, and just relaxed. It had been a while since Kurt experienced something like this. Whenever he went out with Rachel or Finn, it was always slightly reserved and peaceful. Now he was at one of the loudest - if not loudest - tables at Bread Stix and he didn't seem to mind.

"No, no, no!" David expressed as they began debating the pure awesome of the film. "The whole scene of Snape's death was totally wrong!"

"So what!" Wes questioned loudly. "The scene was emotional as hell; even that bald guy was tearing up!"

The guys laughed at the thought. Blaine, who was remotely quiet during the convo, spoke up. "Hey, I brought tissues for a reason." He joked, emptying out his pocket full of used tissues.

Kurt - who hasn't said a word since they asked him to join them for dinner - smiled halfway, raising a brow at the shorter man. He didn't cry when he watched the scene. It was sad and his heart broke, but his eyes stayed dry. Even when Alan Rickman himself was crying as he held Lily's body, he remained calm.

"So, Kurt!" David called, catching his attention. "How are things at the shop?"

"Yeah, is Blaine's car comin back to life or what?" Jeff asked.

Kurt half coughed, half laughed. "Well, things are good. Business is swell. As for his car, my dad, brother, and I are doing our best, and so for, things look positive."

Blaine moaned happily, lifting his fist into the car. "Ugh, thank you, God!" Kurt shifted, cracking his neck awkwardly. "Man, you have no idea how great it is to hear that. No one knows how much it sucks to not have a car, when your job is about two hours away."

"Speed Racer here has been absolutely lost without his REO Speedwagon." Wes smirked.

Blaine gave him a look before placing his share for the bill. "Haha, very funny." Kurt reached for his pocket to retrieve his wallet, but Blaine stopped him. "Don't worry, I got it." Kurt opened his mouth to protest, but Blaine spoke first. "You got a salad and water; I got it." Gathering the money, Blaine placed it on the black sheet with the bill. "Alright! Let's get the show on the road!"

As they walked to the parking lot, Kurt stated he had to head home. They invited him to come over to Blaine's to hangout, maybe even play video games, but he explained how he had to get up to go to work, and it wasn't exactly the best idea to be tired when working with cars.

They understood of course, and bid him goodbye. Blaine was the last to do anything. They stood in front of Kurt's truck in silence.

"So . . . Did you enjoy yourself?" Blaine asked softly.

Kurt smiled. "More than I expected too." He admitted. "See you around?"

Blaine blushed slightly. "It's me, remember? I'll be around to check on my motorized child."

Kurt chuckled. "Night, Blaine."

"See ya, Kurt."

Turning on his heel, Kurt got into his truck and drove home. Before doing anything for bed, Kurt took his small movie ticket stub, and placed it in his memory box, wanting to saver the feeling of being normal, even if it were only for a moment.


	11. Chapter 11

I hope you enjoy this and a big, big shout out to my beta! Also, anyone else on Scarves&? All Klaine fanfic, and it's awwweeeesome! Enjoy this, guys!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>It had been four days since their movie outing, and Blaine was nowhere to be found. Kurt figured now that he actually hung out, Blaine would be by suggesting more things they would do. But nothing happened. Day after day, there was no sign of him. Kurt acted like he didn't care, nonchalantly asking his father if Blaine stopped by while he was away, but the answer was no.<p>

Kurt played it off as whatever. Blaine was probably too busy with work and his friends to stop by and annoy Kurt, though he was sure he'd come to see how the car was. Almost all the parts had arrived and the crew was beginning to put it back, piece by piece. Pretty soon, it would be back to normal.

Due to the lack of business and sheer boredom, Kurt texted Blaine.

_**Cars lookin pretty good. Hope U can stop by n C it**_

To his surprise, a response text came within a few minutes.

**Blaine A.**

_**Cnt wait!**_

_So he can text, but he can't show his face?_ Kurt thought to himself. Seizing the moment, he texted back.

_**Dad says the Coupe will B better than B4**_

**Blaine A.**

_**That's gr8! Cnt wait 2 have it bck on the road.**_

_**If U want, U can come n chck it out. Tell us if there is nething U want done.**_

A few moments passed before another message came.

**Blaine A.**

_**Yeah. Totes. I'll b there in a few.**_

_**Great**_, Kurt replied, biting his lip slightly.

A strange sensation was starting to bubble up in his stomach, though Kurt ignored it. Tossing his phone back into his pocket, Kurt went back to work.

* * *

><p>It was almost an hour and a half later when Kurt heard the knock on the door. He called for them to enter, and waited until he heard footsteps.<p>

"Kurt?" It was Blaine's voice calling him. Popping up from the side of the car, Kurt turned to see Blaine slowly entering the garage.

Kurt did a double-take when he saw him, and gasped softly. The right side of his lip fat, while his cheek was slightly black and blue.

"Oh my," Kurt stopped himself. "What happened!"

Blaine winced as the taller boy rushed over. "It's nothing. The guys and I got into a little scuffle with some people at work."

"What? Angry fans?"

"Not exactly." Blaine said. "Pirates." Kurt cocked his head, confused. "You know the pirates that put on a show over in the water park?" Kurt replied with a nod. "Well, they're not exactly fond of the Dalton boys."

"Do you need anything?" Kurt asked.

Blaine waved him, telling him no. "It happened a couple days ago. I'm fine now. So, how's my baby doin?" Blaine turned towards his car, giving it the attention he came for. Kurt could see he didn't want to talk about what happened, and he above all people wasn't going to push for answers.

"Well, almost all the parts are in. As you can see, we already hooked on the new bumpers. We're just waiting on the hood, the windows, and the licenses plate to come in. We have all the doors, but we don't wanna put those on until we get the windows."

"Sweet! How long until you think it'll be finished and ready to drive?"

Kurt thought about it for a moment. "Hmm, I'd give it a week. Give or take a day or two. We would've been done sooner, but there were a lot of parts. To be perfectly honest, you would've been better off buying an entirely new car."

Blaine looked to the ground, kicking it slowly as a small, sad laugh came out from his lips. "That's not really possible." He stated. "You see, my grandfather brought me this car when I was eighteen. My dad refused to help me, and since I was fresh out of school, and getting ready to go to college, and had no job, good old grandpa stepped in."

Something in the way Blaine spoke about his grandfather made Kurt smile. "You were close?"

Blaine nodded slowly. "My dad and I didn't have the best relationship. I guess I was never good enough for him, ya know? But with my grandpa, I was always number one. No matter what I did. Whether it was rode a bike without training wheels or get into one of the top colleges in the entire country, he was proud of me."

"I'm glad you had someone like that."

Blaine coughed, running his hands through his hair. "Yeah, he was a great man. I mean, he was even there for me when I came out."

In an instant, Kurt's jaw dropped. "You . . . what?"

"Came out? You . . . You don't know? Kurt, I'm gay."

Before Kurt could give any sort of reply, Burt walked in, whistling carelessly as he whipped down his hands with an old, dirty rag.

"Oh, hey guys." He stopped for a moment, looking between the two. "I didn't interrupt on something, did I?"

"No!" Kurt said quickly. "Not at all." Unzipping his overalls, Kurt hurried towards the door. "I'm gonna head home a little early. I'm feeling lightheaded."

"Oh. Okay. I'll see you later!" Burt called, but he son was already out the door and heading the parking lot. Turning back, Burt shrugged, looking to Blaine. "Wonder what that was about."


	12. Chapter 12

Small chapter where Burt is a BAMF and Kurt is wrong (big shock there). Comment and tell me what you think. Read it on Scarves&Coffee and leave a shout it. This is em, and Klainer out!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>After his last encounter with Blaine, Kurt made sure to avoid him as much as possible. He'd go to the shop as soon as it opened and leave around the afternoon, only to come back to help close up. And on the off chance Blaine did stop by when he was there, Kurt did what any other person would do: he hid. Whether it was in the office, in the bathroom, or even the supplies closet, he stayed in there until the coast was clear.<p>

This, of course, confused the hell out of Burt and the other workers. From what it seemed, he and Blaine were beginning to become good pals. And Burt, of course, wasn't one to just let things slide right under his nose.

Kurt was sitting in the kitchen, eating a bowl of cereal when Burt found him.

"Hey, Kurt."

"Hi, dad."

"So, any plans for tonight?"

"Aside from staying home, locked in my room, and reading until I pass out, no."

"Oh." They were silent for a moment. "I just would've figured you'd go out and do something. You know, with like Blaine or someone."

Kurt pushed his bowl away, sighing. "Is there something you'd like to say?"

"Well, that depends, is there something you'd like to talk about?"

"No, not really."

"You sure?" Burt pushed. "Not even why you and Blaine have mysteriously stopped speaking and how you've been avoiding him at all cost?"

Kurt stood, rinsed his bowl out, and placed it in the dish washer. "I haven't been avoiding him."

"Ernie told me he had to take a leak out back, because you locked yourself into the bathroom for twenty minutes, which just so happens to be the amount of time Blaine spent at the shop."

"Look, Dad, Blaine . . . He's just not the type of person I wanna be around, okay?"

Burt was silent for a moment, trying to put the pieces together. "Did he say something to you? Call you a name or something? Cause if he did, just say the word, and I'll make me take his business elsewhere."

"What! No, dad. Not like that. Besides, with all the money he's making us, it would be pointless to turn him away." Kurt sighed, hanging his head. "He's gay."

Burt made an expression, something caught between confusion and understanding. "Oh." He said. "And that's a bad thing."

"Yes." Kurt answered quickly. "No. I mean, I don't know. Look! We both know I'm not a people person-"

"You used to be!" Burt cut in. "You used to love people. Loved being around them, and talking to them, and bossing them around."

"Things changed, dad. I've changed. Look, I like Blaine, but after what happened . . . I don't know if I can handle that type of friendship anymore."

Burt sighed, making his way to the opening between the kitchen and the hallway. "Alright. I'm not gonna say anymore . . . After this." Kurt rolled his eyes - like he hasn't heard this a million and one times. "You say you're not ready the that kind of friendship. Alright, I can understand that. But time has passed, Kurt. Now I'm not saying to go jump this kid's bones or anything, but I think it's time you go out and hang with people your own age. Live a little, ya know? Just think about it."

Kurt sighed angrily, tossing one of the dish towels beside him into the sink. Why did his father always have to make sense?


	13. Chapter 13

Blaine demands answers and Kurt throws a mini bitch-fit. So, I've been working on this and I'm proud to say that chapters have been getting longer! Go me! Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>It was late into the night - nearly nine PM - and Kurt was getting ready to close up shop. They rarely stayed open that late, but they had three new cars to deal with, all with different work being done, and the rest of the shipments on the Coupe came in, so they were all pretty busy.<p>

He was originally supposed to close with Finn, but Rachel called, and they were on the phone for an hour, being all lovey-dovey, making Kurt sick to his stomach, so he ended up kicking Finn out for the night. Finn didn't seem too heartbroken; he practically ran over a fire hydrant while leaving (most likely rushing over to Rachel's).

Kurt couldn't blame him, of course. Young love was a powerful feeling, and whether it was as strong as Rachel and Finn's or as simple as Brittany and Artie's was, love wasn't something you can toy with.

Leaning against the sink, Kurt sighed, remembering what it felt like to be in love. It seemed so long ago, but in fact, it was only a year. It was like he walked on water; nothing could touch him. Well, almost nothing.

Jumping at the sound of his name, Kurt screamed, turning to the voice.

"Sorry! Jeez, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

Kurt squinted his eyes as the voice came closer, walking into the light. "Blaine? Shit, I almost jumped out of my skin!"

"Sorry. I didn't mean to." Blaine winced apologetically.

"What are you doing here?" Kurt demanded.

Blaine stepped closer, watching out for utensils on the floor Kurt missed to pick up. "I wanted to see you." Kurt turned his back to Blaine, washing turning the water on in the sink. "The other day, when you ran out after I told you I was gay . . . what was that all about?"

"Just forget about it, okay?" Kurt offered, moving past Blaine to pick up on the tools, bringing them back to the sink, washing them.

"I don't want to forget it, Kurt. I thought, I don't know, I thought we were becoming friends, ya know? I also kinda thought you were . . . too . . . ya know?"

"Gay?" Kurt answered. "Well, I'll have you know, I am gay, Blaine."

"So why the big deal? We were fine up until I told you."

"Look, it's complicated, okay?"

"How? Are you not out yet?"

"No. I mean, yes, I'm out. I have been for years."

"So why!"

"I said it was complicated!" Kurt shouted.

Blaine stepped closer, almost close enough to touch. "That may be true, Kurt, but no matter how complicated, pushing someone away isn't the answer. Now, I didn't come here to cause trouble. I just wanted . . . I don't know. I wanted to tell you, if you ever needed a friend, I'm here." Turning away, Blaine made his way to the exit. "Goodnight, Kurt." With that said, Blaine left the auto shop, leaving Kurt alone with his thoughts.

Leaning over then sink, Kurt looked in, seeing his reflection in water. Sighing angrily, Kurt splashed it away, before throwing one of the wrenches across the room in a loud bang.


	14. Chapter 14

WHAT! What is this? A lengthy chapter? Oh snap! Lol, the sad thing is, this is actually two chapters put together. I thought it would work better. Annnnyway. Please enjoy and tell me what you think.

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt Hummel didn't like being told what to do. If he wanted something, he was man enough to go out and get it. If not, he wasn't going to waste his time, nor would he allow anyone to make a decision for him. He wasn't some four year old tot who couldn't choose between this or that. He was nineteen years old; a young man.<p>

That is, until his father got sick and tired of his son moping around, and decided to do something about this.

"Dad, come on!"

It was Friday night and although he planned to stay home and do, well nothing, Kurt was informed he was to go out with his brother. This, of course, didn't sit well with Kurt.

"Dad!" Kurt shouted, following his dad from room to room. "Dad, this isn't fair!"

"Well, Kurt, life isn't fair. And that's something we both vouch for." Burt said nonchalantly, grabbing one of the lite beers from the fridge.

"But I have plans!" Kurt argued.

"Doing what!" Burt questioned.

"I . . . but . . . Ugh!" Kurt scampered for an answer, but came up empty. "Forget it! This is barbaric!"

Burt leaned back against the kitchen sink, sipping his beer. "No! What's barbaric is watching you sit around the house and do nothing, when you could be outside, living your life!"

"I like my life the way it is, thank you very much." Kurt said, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Look, we're done arguing. You're gonna go out with Rachel and Finn, and you're gonna have a good time."

"But, Dad!"

"No "buts", Kurt! You can't just lie around and sulk anymore." A loud honking sound came from outside. "That's them."

Kurt stood his ground, refusing to move. "I'm not a child anymore. If I don't wanna go somewhere, you can't make me."

"Oh, I can. As your father, your landlord, and your boss, I order you to go out with your friends." Kurt remained silent. "It's either go out tonight, or you're helping out at church on Sunday."

Kurt's faced dropped. Even the Lord knew Kurt wasn't going to choose that option. Sighing, he grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair.

"Have fun. And no complaining! For each complaint I hear about, you gotta serve an hour at church."

"I get it!" Kurt yelled before heading out the door, cursing his father for meddling in his life.

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><p>Kurt leaned back in his seat, sipping down his third cappuccino. The plans for the night: dinner and a show at Bread Stix. The event: amateur night. Twice a month, the restaurant did a small show, featuring the towns "most talented" performers. It wasn't as bad as Kurt thought it would be. The four that already went on weren't terrible, though they showed no real pizzazz. None of them would make it in the music industry.<p>

"So tell me Rachel," Kurt voiced as they called for a break before their next performer. "You and Finn have been coming here for almost every show since you got back from New York. Why is it that you never actually show in any of them? You know have the talent."

Rachel blushed, looking down at her hands. "I need to keep my voice in control until I return to Julliard. I can sing of course, but no competing. The last thing I need is to override and end up losing it."

"Beside's," Finn piped in, "Rachel's already a star, might as well let the others have a chance to shine."

Kurt smiled fondly, rolling his eyes as the two shared a sweet kiss. He was surprised to hear that Rachel was coming home during the summer after her break from Julliard. Before going, all she ever spoke about were the electives and summer and winter courses and events. He was sure she'd stay there and be the star; instead she came home to their rinky-dink down. Which, of course, forever baffled Kurt.

_Voice in control, ha!_ He thought to himself. _She never did that while in Glee. . . ._

The voices of the crowd slowly died down as the emcee stepped onto stage.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen, it's come to that time of the night when we only have one performer left, but I promise you, we saved the best for last. He's our favorite little summertime bug; let's give it up for Mr. Blaine Anderson!"

Kurt sat straight at the sound of the voice, turning towards his brother with his head cocked slightly, wondering if he heard correctly.

"Oh man, I totally forgot Blaine performs here!" Finn whispered excitingly.

"This isn't his first night?" Kurt questioned.

"Nah! He's a regular." Finn told him, before being shushed by Rachel for silence.

As the lights went down and the spotlight stuck, Blaine came out from the back, holding nothing but a guitar. Hopping onto the stool, he waited for the pianist and the drummer to take their places and begin to play. He followed soon after with the guitar.

"_Skies are crying, I am watching, catching teardrops in my hands. Only silence as it's ending, like we never had a chance. Do you have to, make me feel like there is nothing left of me_?"

Kurt nearly held his breath as he listened to the lyrics. It wasn't the first time he heard the song, originally sung by Demi Lovato, but he never heard it like this. His voice didn't fit the range it was usually sung in, but that was okay. In fact, it almost seemed to work perfectly for him.

"_You can take everything I have, you can break everything I am. Like I'm made of glass; like I'm made of paper. Go on and try to tear me down, I will be rising from the ground. Like a skyscraper! Like a skyscraper!_"

This performance was different from the one at Six Flags, Kurt knew that right off the bat. With the Warblers, it seemed stress-less. Though Blaine was the lead, he worked with the other guys, so there wasn't really a leader. They were a team, and their voices worked together in unison. But this was totally different. It was Blaine and the instruments, nothing more. He was filled with passion and energy. Aggressive, almost, especially at the bridge.

When he got to the final chorus, Kurt held his breath, waiting for the final note. Kurt knew it was difficult for most female's, so for a male, it seemed almost impossible. But to his surprise, he hit it perfectly. No scratchiness or screeching. At the end of the song, everyone applauded, and some even stood, as Blaine and the rest musicians bowed shortly before heading off stage.

"Ready to go?" Finn asked Rachel.

With a small nod, he placed her silk jacket over her shoulders as they stood from their chairs. They were nearly out the door when Kurt spotted Blaine. He stepped for some unknown reason, causing the others to do the same.

"You go on ahead," he spoke to them, though looking in Blaine's direction. "I'll catch up." Leaving without another word, Kurt made a bee-line for the short male. Blaine was laughing and chatting with two of the other performers before they headed back stage, leaving Blaine alone. "Blaine?"

Hearing his name, Blaine turned to face Kurt, and his smile fell short. Cocking his head, he stepped back. "Kurt? What are you doing here?"

"I came with Rachel and Finn." He explained.

"Oh? Where are they?" Blaine asked, looking over Kurt's shoulder.

"They went to the car, and knowing them, they're probably being sweet as pie and playing tonsil hockey." Blaine laughed softly, his mouth tugging up slowly on one side. "I just wanted to tell you that you were great. I've never seen someone, aside from Rachel, have so much passion for the music."

"Well, thank you, Kurt. That means a lot of me. If you'd excuse me, I gotta head back stage."

"Blaine!" Kurt said suddenly, stopping him from leaving. "I . . . I'd also like to apologize for what happened that night. I . . . I'm not good with people, obviously. I used to be, but now . . . Now I'm kind of a creeper. I'd rather watch than actually participate."

Blaine raised a hand, smiling softly. "It's no big deal, honestly. I guess I got a little carried away. We both made a mistake, and I think we can both move on from it."

"I also wanted to say, if you ever wanna come by the shop and you know . . . hangout? Talk about cars or music or whatever, I think I'd really like that." He confessed.

Kurt waited in suspense for Blaine to reply. He wasn't exactly sure why he said it, but he sure as hell didn't regret it. Finally, Blaine spoke.

"I think I might just do that." Turning back, Blaine made his way to the back. "See you around, Kurt." He said before disappearing.

Kurt smiled to himself, proud of what he accomplished. He wasn't sure what it'd lead to, but for the first time in a long time, he was happy he stepped out of his comfort-zone.


	15. Chapter 15

Hello my lover Klainers! I hope you enjoy this chapter. It's pretty small, but very fluffy. I promise a bigger chapter is coming. I'm also working on adding in other characters, like Tina, Mercedes, Santana, and Brittany. Please enjoy and feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt had never seen a happier face the moment Blaine laid eyes on his car. The men of Hummel Tires and Lube put all their sweat and effort into the car, leading to the payoff to be quite amazing. It looked as good as new, from what Blaine stated as he walked in circles, checking out every non-dent and non-scratch there was to see.<p>

"I'm glad you approve." Kurt said, smiling.

Blaine looked up, his pearly whites blazing. "Approve? Kurt! I could kiss you I'm so pleased! God, I can't believe it. It looks better than it did before the accident!"

Kurt clapped his hands together. He was glad to see his friend in such a state of joy.

"Is it drivable?" Blaine questioned.

"Yes and no." Kurt explained. "No licenses plates, see? Once we have those, you're free to be back on the road."

"When do you think they'll be comin in?"

Kurt bit his lip, giving an estimate. "Two . . . Three days maybe?"

Blaine smiled widely, gazing down at his car. "I can't wait. It's been hell without it."

"Well don't worry, cause the wait is almost over."

"Do you wanna go out?" Blaine asked suddenly. "I'm just . . . I need to get out and do something, ya know? Celebrate."

_Oh._ Kurt thought. _That kind of going out. . . . _"Sure." Kurt replied. "We'll take my car. Lemme just go tell Finn and then we'll head out."

"We'll get some ice cream!" Blaine shouted to him as Kurt headed to the office.

"My treat." Kurt laughed before leaving.

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><p>"Oh! Wait, leave this on!" Blaine requested, placing his hand on Kurt's, keeping him from shutting the radio off. "I love The Beatles."<p>

Kurt pulled his hand away, ignoring the small tingle he received from when Blaine touched him. They sat there for a few moments, listening to the music and eating their ice cream.

"I performed this song when I was in school." Blaine said unexpectedly.

"Oh?"

"It was my first talent show. I was so nervous."

"Did you win?" Kurt asked.

Blaine shook his head, his spoon sticking from his mouth. "I was a Freshmen against all upper classmen. They weren't too hard on me though." Blaine paused for a moment, then looked to Kurt. "Do you sing?"

Kurt cleared throat, swallowing hard. "N-no. Not since High school."

"I get this weird vibe from you. Like a performer vibe."

"Yeah. Weird." Kurt looked towards the window, hoping the subject of him singing would quickly be dropped. "So, how are the Warblers?"

"They're good." Blaine replied with a full mouth. Moaning, he motioned for Kurt to take his cup. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out several tickets, trading them for the cup. "For your family."

Kurt looked at the paper in his hand, which he noticed to be free passes for Six Flags. A lot of them.

"Blaine . . . There are a lot of tickets here."

"I know. And they're for all year round. I figured it was the least I could do for you guys, since you've been working so hard on my car."

"I don't know what to say? Oh wait, yes I do. Look out for Finn when he hugs you to death." The two share a joyful laughed. Kurt clutches the tickets. "Thank you, really."

Blaine looked at him, his brown eyes sparkling. "What are friends for?" Turning towards the radio, Blaine smiled widely. The latest P!nk hit was playing, causing Blaine to dance in his seat. "Oh, yeah! This is my jam!" He said singing along.

Kurt watched from his seat, laughing like it was nothing, just like he used to.


	16. Chapter 16

Hello my lovelies! Today's chapter is a bit different. It's pretty deep and feaures flashbacks, and Kurt starts to stumble back into hurt-zone. I hope you enjoy; I worked very hard on it.

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>"Can you believe that pass! It was straight to him and he just let slip through his fingers! What the hell was that!"<p>

Kurt stared blankly at Blaine as he jumped and hollered at the small TV. ESPN was showing reruns of the some old football game, and though he's seen it twelve or more times, he wanted to watch it while Kurt finished up at the shop.

"Did you see that! Unbelievable!" Blaine continued, mocking one of the plays.

It shocked Kurt to see him act this way, even though he knew it would happen. Then again, his father and Finn act the same way. He couldn't really complain. He would cry every time at the end of Moulin Rouge, even though he knew the outcome.

"Kurt? Hello? Earth to Kurt!"

"Huh? What?"

Blaine smiled softly, walking towards the car Kurt was shining. He leaned across the hood, leaning on his elbows.

"You're not really a football guy, are you?" He asked softly.

"No," Kurt admitted. "To be brutally honest, I'm not any kind of sports guy. That's more Finn's area."

"What's your area?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well, you don't like sports, what are you into? Cars, maybe? You seem to work on them a lot. You must spend at least twelve hours a day here."

"I like cars, this is true, but it's not my favorite thing to do."

"Then what is your favorite?"

Kurt thought about it for a moment. Music, movies, fashion, those used to be the answers. Now. . . He didn't really have a hobby or anything he was really interested in. Being busy. That's what he liked. Anything that kept his head above water. Kept him from thinking.

Before he could give any type of answer, the bell above the door hang loudly, and two figures walked in. After a second or two, Kurt realized it was Nick and Jeff.

"Hey guys." Blaine walked around the car, standing beside Kurt. "What brings you here?"

"Hey, Blaine. Hey, Kurt. We didn't mean to bother you."

"It's a free country. Besides, my dad has been anticipating to see who Blaine brings around here." Kurt smirked.

"We found something, at the park." Jeff explained slowly.

"Well, we didn't really find it." Nick stated.

"We did, but we think it was placed there. You know, by our performing trailer?"

"What did find?" Blaine asked curiously.

Cautiously, Nick handed Blaine the object he was holding in his hand. It was hard and wrapped in brown paper. Pulling the paper back, Blaine revealed it to be his license plate. It was bent and bashed, and had the word "FAGGOT" written across it in bold, black paint.

Kurt's face fell when he read the word. Blaine sighed, staring down at the piece of metal.

"You found it just like this?" He asked to two.

Both nodded. "It was wrapped and everything."

"It had a note on it, saying "Blaine and the Pips". We were sort of confused, so we opened it, and there it was."

"We knew we had to bring it straight to you."

Blaine breathed again, wrapping the paper back around it. "Fucken Pirates." He muttered.

"P-Pirates?" Kurt questioned, swallowing hard.

"Yeah. I've told you about them."

"T-they attacked you." Kurt remembered seeing Blaine with the fat lip and bruise eyes.

"Every since we got hired, they've been out to get us." Jeff put in.

"It's not our fault we have talent! And, the costumes work too. Girls dig Milk Men."

"I knew they were assholes, but I never thought they'd go _this_ far. Can't say I'm not surprised, thought." Tossing the scrap mental the recycle bin Burt had set up for all spare metals, Blaine smiled brightly. "Ah, well. My new plate is gonna be much cooler. I personalized it and everything. Just wait until those swashbucklers see it!"

While the other three laughed, Kurt ran into the back, his mouth clamped tightly over his mouth. He heard Blaine call after him, but he didn't listen. He darted straight for the bathroom just in time to throw up the contains of his stomach.

He mind trailed back and whether his eyes were open or closed, all he saw was that night. The parking lot was full of cars, but only a few people stood around the truck. Their voices rang in his hears, the names stabbing him harshly.

"_Cocksuck! Dicklick! Ladyboy! Faggot!"_

Faggot. Faggot, faggot, faggot. It was their favorite word. They called him it. They called Dave it. They shouted it as they beat them and laughed as they watched him bleed. The look of Brett's eyes when he was hovering over him, the bat in hand.

"_Nothing but a useless faggot, and that's all you'll ever be."_

Kurt screamed as the vision of Brett taking the final blow came across his eyes, and he realized he wasn't lying on the floor in the parking lot at school. He was on the floor in the bathroom, covered in sweat, tears, and puke residue.

Someone was knocking on the door. Calling out to him. Blaine! He remembered Blaine and the others were still there.

"Kurt? Hey, are you alright? Kurt, open the door."

"Go away." He whispered. "Leave me alone! Just go away and leave!" He shouted, crying harder now.

A moment passed as everything was silent. Then he heard another voice. Burt's. "Kurt? Open the door, son. Kurt, open the door or I'm gonna break in."

Several bangs against the door came next. Kurt, who was sitting in the corner beside the toilet, pulled his knees in, and continued to cry.

"Just go away," he murmured, hiding his face in his knees.

Moments later, the door flew open, and Burt was by his side, hovering protectively over his son. He didn't need to ask what was wrong; he could see it in Kurt's eyes. Like a little boy with a boo-boo, Burt lifted his son into his arms and carried him to his truck.

"You're gonna be alright, son." He promised, but Kurt knew better.


	17. REAL 17

Hello all! Here is the next chapter! Omigod! I am so so sorry! Here is the real chapter 17. Please forgive me for the confusion!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt woke late the next morning; his head was pounding and his stomach churned. He remembered very little from the day before, small glimpses and such. He remembered Blaine and football. He remembered Nick and Jeff, and the broken licenses plate. And he remembered the flashbacks; the horrible, sickening flashbacks. After that, everything went blank.<p>

Kurt tried to stand, hoping to go downstairs, but his legs shook beneath him, causing him to lean back on his bed for support. By chance, Burt had been walking by and noticed this. He entered the room at once.

"Hey! Kurt, you alright, buddy?"

"Yeah. I just . . . I was trying to stand."

"Lay down." Burt told him, helping him back into bed. "You had a rough night."

"What happened?"

Burt stalled, looking down at the comforter. "It was bad night." He stated. "Doctor Fitzgerald will be over in a few. You just sit tight, okay? You want anything to eat or drink? You must be starving."

Fitzgerald? If Kurt's old psychologist was coming by, then it wasn't just a bad or rough night, it was horrible. Kurt tried to think back, but his head hurt too much to function. Leaning back, he shook his head.

"I'll have Carole make you something just in case. It was bad enough to sleep on an empty stomach, you can't spend the day with one."

Burt left the room, sending Carole up a few minutes later. She brought him toast, orange juice, and water. Kurt was stuck between being hungry and feeling nauseous, but he thanked her and took the tray. He ate two pieces and drank half the OJ, though it burned his throat harshly. Coughing, he switched with the water. It was cold and tasteless, so it worked well with him.

After eating, he placed the tray beside his bed and waited for Dr. Fitzgerald to come. It had been almost a year since he last saw her. After the incident, Burt thought it would be best for Kurt to talk to a professional. Kurt was resistant at first, but eventually the idea grew on him. Kurt had always been a vocal person, but when it came to his deepest thoughts, he kept to himself. So it was hard for him to get down deep with someone, especially someone he didn't even know.

When she finally showed up, she came straight to his room, as sat across from him in the computer chair from his desk. She asked him what he remembered from the previous night, and when he said nothing, she went on to tell him that he had slips in and out of past. This confused Kurt. How could someone slip in and out of the past?

Then she told him he was suffering from PTSD, also known as Posttraumatic stress disorder. Kurt remembered being diagnosed after the attack, but he thought he beat it as time went on. Fitzgerald explained it could come back at the strangest of moments; all that was needed was for something to trigger it.

When Burt showed her the licenses plate, she knew it had to be that. Kurt begged for details, figuring he had the right to know. She slowly told him how he screamed to the attackers, begging them to stop, and to leave him alone. He cried Dave's name, and cried Burt's. He cried for help, but no one came. He stopped after a while, and passed out, only to wake from a nightmare several hours late. The whole shebang repeated itself until he was knocked out for good.

Kurt felt lower than low. He thought he had moved on from the nightmares and reliving the past. When he asked her if she thought the PTSD would repeat, and he'd be just as bad as he used to be, she politely declined this idea. Though it was a traumatic evening, she figured that was the worst of it. She told him the nightmares may continue, and if so, he was to call her. She wanted to set up meetings again, just to talk.

Kurt felt weak and alone, but agreed. If he wanted to beat this thing for good, he was gonna have to start from scratch. He agreed to go every other day, three times a week, for an hourly session. He hated having to deal with all this again, but he knew he had no other option. It was this or deal with the nightmares, and there was no way he was going through that again.

He smiled gracefully and thanked the doctor as she took her leave. Lying back in his bed, Kurt sighed, wondering if he'd ever be close to normal again.


	18. Chapter 18

Hey guys! Sorry fro the late update. Please review and tell me what you thought. Enjoy!

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><p>Kurt leaned back in seat, blindly scrolling through his open tabs on his computer. Youtube, Tumblr, Facebook; nothing interesting, just stuff to spend time on. He came home from the doctor's feeling bored and annoyed. He hated talking about himself; at least not the way he used to. Getting deep down into his inner being, finding the true Kurt Hummel, and pulling him out piece by piece.<p>

Nothing but a crock of bull. But he went and did as he were told. He spoke about the nightmares and the flashbacks. He listened to Fitzgerald and promised he'd make an effort to get back into step. He was to listen to the music he used to like, hang with his old friends - at least the one's home from college - and write to the ones that weren't. He was to have fun, and be careless.

He had no intention to do any of those things, but a fail promise wasn't something new to him.

A small knock on his door pulled Kurt away from his thoughts. Turning behind him, he watched as Burt opened the door and popped his head in.

"Hey, Son."

"Hi, Dad."

"You have a visitor." Burt told him. "I was gonna shoo em away, but he's kinda persistent,"

Before Kurt could respond, Burt stepped aside, allowing Blaine access into the room.

"Have fun, boys." Burt added before closing the door.

Kurt and Blaine locked eyes; Blaine smiling politely, while Kurt's mouth hung slightly. They were like that for a few seconds, before Blaine gave in.

"Hi, Kurt."

"Hi," Kurt said lamely.

Moving forward, Blaine placed his large shoulder bag onto Kurt's head, opening the flap carelessly.

"So, I brought movies, magazines, and popcorn. I don't know what your favorite genre or flavor, so I basically brought everything I had, regarding the movies and mags, and for popcorn, I have plain, home-style, extra salty, extra butter, and chocolate flavored."

Kurt watched as his friend unloaded his pack, tossing each object into its own pile. When he finally finished, his bed was covered in probably thirteen different magazines, twenty movies, and ten different popcorn packets.

"Um," Kurt replied dumbly.

"I figured," Blaine spoke up, sensing Kurt's confusion. "Since we didn't get to hang out the other day, we'd make up for lost time." Reaching over, he began picking up various films. "So, what will it be? Howl's Moving Castle? 50 First Dates? Ooh! I have Winnie the Pooh and Footloose. The Little Mermaid. I haven't seen that in a while; we should definitely put that on our watch list. I also have-"

Kurt stood from his chair, his hands up questioningly. "So, that's it?" He asked. "You're just gonna come here and act like the other day didn't matter? Not even gonna ask what happened?"

Blaine thought about for a second. "Nope." He replied.

"Oh." Kurt murmured, quite shocked by this.

"You don't like being told what to do." Blaine told him. "So if even if I did ask, I highly doubt you would've given me an answer. You're the type of person where, the more someone pushes, the harder your shell becomes."

"Y-yeah," Kurt answered.

"Well, I'm not going to push. I'm gonna sit tight, relax, and wait for you to open up. Might take a while, but it'll be worth it." Blaine went back to looking through the films, trying to decid which he wanted to watch first. "Now, let's stop this gloom and doom talk and get the show on the road, huh? I'll pick the movie, you make the popcorn?"

Kurt thought about it for a second. There was no harm in watching a movie, so why not?"

"Yeah. Um, I'll be right back."

Grabbing two of the popcorn packets, Kurt headed downstairs. Burt and Carole were sitting in the kitchen, having coffee, when he walked in.

"Oh, Kurt, lemme do that." Carole offered. Taking the packets, she placed them in the microwave, and pressed the POPCORN button.

"You let him in?" Kurt asked his father.

"He said he just wanted to hangout. Doesn't seem too horrible." Burt defended.

"You couldn't tell him I was sleeping or something?"

"I'm sure I could've, but what's the point of that? The doctor said you gotta start hanging out with people. Ya know, getting back into the habit. You and Blaine are friends, so I figured what the hey."

Kurt turned his attention onto the beeping microwave. Grabbing one of the glass bowls, he tossed the steaming hot fully popped popcorn in, grabbed two Diet Cokes, and headed back upstairs for his room. When he got there, Blaine was lying back on his bed, staring at the TV, which was just beginning to play 101 Dalmatians.

"I always wanted a puppy." He stated. "My parents didn't think I'd be able to take care of it. If you have one hundred and one puppies, what would you do?"

Kurt laughed softly, taking his spot on the bed. "Cry due to the messes they'd make."

Blaine nudged Kurt's leg playfully. "Yeah, but imagine the cuddling. They're all soft and stuff. That would be like one giant snuggle fest."

"Are you gonna talk during the whole film?" Kurt asked, jokingly.

Blaine smirked boyishly. "Probably. Not sure if you've noticed, I tend to voice my options."

Kurt rolled his eyes, tossing a piece of popcorn into his mouth. "I've never noticed."


	19. Chapter 19

Hey guys! Please enjoy this chapter, it features Kurt almost doing something with clothing!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt blushed, slightly ashamed of the amount of times he let his eyes wonder as he and Blaine walked around Blaine's home. Kurt could tell Blaine was wealthy from the moment they met. Kurt usually wasn't one to judge someone on their looks, but there was just something about him that screamed "Private school". Maybe it was his dapperness or how nice his clothes were, Kurt didn't know.<p>

But after one look at Blaine's house, Kurt knew he was spot on. They weren't castle-by-the-sea or butler rich, but they definitely had money. Big house with a long driveway. Antique painting on the walls, and a large chandelier hanging in the foyer. The living room was humongous, with a large fireplace, and grand piano in the corner.

Kurt's jaw dropped for a moment when he saw it. It had been so long since he touched a piano. His heart began to flutter at the chance to play one again, but he quietly forced that thought from his head.

Following Blaine up the wood and marble stairs, they went down the hallway until they finally reached his room. It was a good size, full of posters, and framed pictures. There was a shelf against the wall that held several trophies, most from singing competition, and a small one for pee-wee soccer. It wasn't too mess; Kurt knew Blaine liked things in order.

Hopping on the bed, Blaine looked up and smiled. "Welcome to Casa de la Anderson." He said proudly.

Kurt smirked, taking a seat at the edge of the bed. "I will admit, it's smaller than I pictured."

Blaine frowned playfully. "Not flashy enough for ya, huh?"

"I was expecting a mansion, maybe a live in butler and maid. You know, the type of elegant wealthy people have."

"Now that's just silly," Blaine argued. "The maid comes come three times a week, which is more than enough. A live in one would just be preposterous!"

"Why, I do believe you are correct, dear sir."

Blaine straightened up, placing his arms behind his bed before lying back. "Now then my good man," he stated, mocking a British accent. "Before we drink our brandy by the pool, and head down to the country club for some golf, whatever shall we do?"

Kurt giggled, slapping his friend's leg. "You are horrible at that."

"No, I'm not! That's poppycock! You sir, are a codfish!"

"Quoting Peter Pan now, are we?"

Blaine smiled charmingly. "I always found Jeremy Sumpter adorable." He admitted. "So really, we have the entire house to ourselves. What do you wanna do?"

Kurt thought about it. Whenever he went to one of his girlfriend's houses, they'd look through magazines, talk about boys, watch sappy movies, and sing to pop songs and show tunes. Sure, he could probably do all those things with Blaine, but Kurt was sure that wasn't exactly what Blaine had in mind. There was always that piano. . . .

"I'm not sure, what do you do when one of the Warbler's come over?"

Blaine sat up in Indian style, his head cocked. "Hmm, we really never hang out at my house. We usually either talk about sports or listen to music or practice, ya know? Oh! That reminds me! I gotta get my outfit ready for Monday's show."

Hopping off the bed, Blaine scurried over to his closet, opening the door, and stepping inside. Despite himself, Kurt followed, his jaw dropped at the size of it. It was large, and had long space to hang shirts, then beside that, a place to hang pants. On the opposite side, shelves to hold jeans and tee-shirts, and along the bottom was an area for shoes. It was almost like the one he dreamed about, minus the revolving outfit organizer.

"We're being salesmen," Blaine spoke, cutting Kurt away from his fantasy. Grabbing a gray suit with matching pants, Blaine held it against himself. "What do you think?"

Kurt bit his lip, his eyes staring. The outfit wasn't horrible, so to say. It was a nice color, but it just didn't work for Blaine.

"Well?" Blaine pushed.

Kurt wanted to say something. Anything. Whether it was nice or not, just he just couldn't. He was caught between wanting to be honest and trying to be normal. Sighing, he said it was nice, looking at the shelves inside of Blaine.

Blaine gazed at him for a moment, before hanging the outfit back up. Kurt knew Blaine knew there was something up, but neither said a word. Having nothing else to do, Blaine suggested they watch a movie. He flipped through the channels until they found something decent.

For the rest of the night, while Blaine was so engrossed with Iron Man's power, Kurt mentally kicked himself. He had grown used to pushing his inner-self down, but this was one of the first times in over a year that he regretted it.


	20. Chapter 20

Hello, hello! Please enjoy this chapter; there's some Hummelberry goin on ;)

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Dr. Fitzgerald gave him strict orders to be around his friends. The people we grew with, and those that could help him when he needed it most. Kurt lied across his bed, his phone in hand. He scrolled up and down, looking for a name. It was hard to choose, since he hadn't spoken to any of these people in over a year.<p>

Besides, Kurt didn't even know if they were home for summer break. Or if they were on vacation or something. Unlike him, they all had important lives to live. Kurt went through his options, stopping ever so often.

First was Mercedes. Oh how he missed Mercedes. She was one of the few that understood his fashion sense and love for music. Well, when he still had all those things. He wanted to click send, but he knew it would be a horrible idea. Even if she didn't try to comfort him, she'd suggest they go shopping or maybe even church. And even the Lord knew Kurt wasn't going to do that.

Next was Tina. Kurt pondered on if she and Mike were still working at that Asian camp they did three summers before. Or if she and Mike were even still together. Maybe she got back with Artie? Kurt skipped over her, knowing there'd be too much detail.

Brittany showed after he scrolled back up. It had been extra long since he spoke to her. After the incident, Brittany devoted herself to being by Santana's side, making sure she was alright. Santana and Dave were pretty good friends after all. Anyway, since Santana didn't want anything to do with Kurt, neither did Brittany.

Quinn, Puck, Lauren, Artie, even some random Cheerios from when he was on the squad. Nobody fit the bill. Sighing, he called the called the one person he knew he could deal with.

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><p>Kurt could hear the spot on tones of "Doe Re Me" the moment he stepped into the Berry household. Rachel's fathers were in the city, enjoying their mini vacation together and catching up on all the musicals Broadway had to offer, so Rachel was home alone. As he approached her bedroom, "Doe Re Me" became "May Me My Mo Moo". She was warming up, something she did twice a day, whether she was singing or not. Kurt cursed himself, maybe Rachel wasn't the best person to call.<p>

But what other choice did he have? Finn was a cop out and he couldn't stand to be with any of his other friends, frightened of what they'd say or do.

Rachel jumped as she caught Kurt's reflection in the mirror, her toy mic pressed against her chest.

"Bad time?" Kurt asked drolly.

Rachel smiled her award winning smile. "Of course not. Come in! I'm finished anyway."

"Do you ever put that voice to rest?" He asked, settling down on her bed.

Rachel gave him a look in the mirror. "Do you not know me? I gotta be prepaid for when I get back to Julliard. Can't be the lead if I'm out of tune."

Kurt smiled to himself. "Ah yes, I distinctly remember you doing a poor rendition of "The Climb". Laryngitis is a cruel mistress."

"Indeed, but I've recovered and have taken the necessary measurements in case that ever happens again." Spinning in her chain, Rachel faces him. "So, what shall we do today? Coffee? Movie? The choice is yours."

Kurt thought about it. His choices were indeed limited. Mall, no. Music store, no. Any other clothing store was a big no. Sighing, he chose coffee. Taking his truck, they headed over to The Lima Bean, grabbing a latte and muffin for Rachel, and a black coffee for Kurt, before sitting down.

"I don't know how you could drink it black. It must taste repulsive." Rachel commented, pulling a piece off her chocolate chip muffin.

"I will admit it's nothing compared to a medium drip, but it's grown on me." The two were quiet for a moment. "So, how long until you go back to school?"

"Classes started September first, but I gotta be there by August thirtieth." Kurt thought of the date, she still had two and a half months to go. "Excited?"

Rachel smiled shyly, looking down at her coffee. "How can I not be? I mean, it's Julliard! I'm so close to being on Broadway, it's almost scary. Yeah, it's still school, but at the same time, it's not. It's like Glee, times a hundred."

"Why didn't you take a summer courses? Or do a play or something? I'm sure Julliard has all of that. Same for winter and spring. There has to be a hundred and one things you could do. Why come back to Ohio?"

Rachel stared at him for a moment, before moving her gaze to her hands. "Well, it's my home. I love the city more than anything, but I couldn't just forget about my life here." Looking up, Rachel smiled weakly. "There's my parents, and Finn. Long distance relationships are hard, you know. If we wanna make it work, we both have to give. And having him be the only one to come around is just selfish. And besides, if I did that, I wouldn't be here with you."

"Yes. Here with me. In a small town full of losers and nobodies. You have everything people strive for, why walk away to come back?"

Rachel remained silent, her expression solemn. Reaching forward, she took his hand in hers. "Because my life and priorities are here, Kurt. And despite what you think, you're not a loser. Or a nobody. You're just . . . a boy who lost his way is all."

Kurt yanked his hand away, grabbing his coffee, holding it close. "I don't have a way Rachel. Not anymore."

"Don't be silly! Just because you fell behind in life, that doesn't mean you can't get right back up and start anew! You can jump right back into step. It's easy as one, two, three."

"Rachel, stop it!" Kurt quietly commanded. "I'm not like you, okay? I can't go back to the same routine after something life changing happens. I've changed, Rachel. This is my life now. I spend my days working on cars in my father's garage and spend my nights locked up in my room, away from the world and their pity. You may not like it, but I do."

The small girl sat silently, her hand grasping her warm cup, almost to the point where it would break in her hands. Her eyes grazed over the table as she spoke.

"You have changed, Kurt." She spoke softly. "I'm sorry I made you angry. That wasn't my intention when I brought it up."

"I know it wasn't. I'm sorry too."

"We should leave. We could hang at my house or something. Watch a movie."

"I'm not a big fan of movies at the moment. Why don't we go to my place? Carole would love to see you, and I'm sure Finn would be happy."

Rachel looked up, placing a show-smile on her face. Kurt knew she felt sorry for him, but he was done taking peoples pity.

"Let's go." She said. Standing from her table, Kurt followed her out, tossing his coffee into the garbage before leaving the lot.


	21. Chapter 21

Wicked short chapter. Kinda fluffy. Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Blaine panted heavily as he darted into the garage. He was given strict orders from Kurt to come to the shop as soon as possible, no questions asked. It was a pain, since he had to convince his dad to drive him all the way there, Blaine didn't mind. For all he knew, Kurt could be in trouble! When he got there, Kurt was sitting on the counter, causally looking at his nails. He smiled softly as the sight of Blaine, leaning over slightly, breathing heavily.<p>

"Hey," He gasped, trying to strand straight. "You . . . you okay?"

"I'm perfectly fine." Kurt said simply.

"Oh. Awesome. W-what's the big emergency then?"

Without a word, Kurt slid off the counter and walked into the middle of the room, beside a sheet-covered car. Pulling the sheet back, he revealed the Blaine's car, in perfect condition. Blaine moved forward, his jaw dropped.

"You finished it?" He asked quietly.

Kurt nodded proudly. "And then some. It's been buffed and shined. Everything it was is gone, and now it's in perfect condition."

"It looks brand new!"

"That's the idea. It's one-hundred percent perfect. All the parts are put in and it's ready to hit the road. Oh! There is one small detail." Blaine cocked his head slightly. "The license plates are gonna take a little while longer, so Dad through in these babies until then."

"Kurt, I . . . I don't have what to say."

"Don't say anything." Fishing into his pockets, Kurt pulled out the keys, tossing them to Blaine. "How about a ride?"

Smiling brightly, the two jumped in the car and headed out. Blaine was surprised by how well it drove; it was like driving an entirely new car.

"At Hummel Tire and Lube we get the job done." Kurt stated matter-of-factly.

"I don't know how to thank you, Kurt." Blaine said as they stopped at the stop light.

"It's my job, Blaine. There's no thank you required."

"How about ice cream then? My treat."

Kurt laughed. "I might just have to take you up on that."

Smiling, the two headed out.


	22. Chapter 22

Probaby my favorite chapter yet! Please enjoy and please please comment!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

* * *

><p>Kurt slammed the door of his truck, huffing as he made his way up the pathway to his house. Blaine was waiting on his steps, just like he said he would be after Kurt texted him, saying he'd be late for their hangout. Blaine was more than willing to wait, though he didn't expect this from the guy who was just so cheerful a mere fifteen minutes ago.<p>

"Bad session?" Blaine addressed softly.

Kurt glared at him. "You have _no_ fucken idea!" Kurt answered bitterly.

Everything was going great. It was a nice day, with the sun shining and birds chirping. Kurt woke up in a good mood, which was honestly pretty rare, seeing as most days Kurt awoke feeling blank or numb. He and Blaine made plans for after his session with Dr. Fitzgerald, which he thought would go pretty well. He's been making effort to be who he used to be. He went out from times to time, whether it was with Finn, or Rachel, the Warblers, or just Blaine alone. He helped Carole get everything together for dinner - setting the table and helping with the dishes. He even sat in the living room with his dad and Finn when some random sports game is on (even though he had no clue to what was going on).

He thought he was making progress, until Dr. Fitz-Crazy-Pants went on to say how he wasn't making _enough_ effort and how if he wanted to make some real progress, he couldn't go half way. She even went as to say he wasn't even trying. Like being normal wasn't a big deal to him. Who the hell does that lady think she is! Just because she was a doctor, had tons of degrees, won awards, and wrote a book, didn't give her the right to judge him and say he wasn't giving enough effort.

Well, okay maybe it did, but that didn't matter! Everything was working fine for Kurt. Throwing him straight into the fire of his old life wouldn't make him come out to be any better; it would only making everything worse!

Huffing and puffing, Kurt stood in front of his house, debating whether or not he still wanted to hangout.

"Wanna talk about it?" Blaine suggested slowly.

"No. Not really. In fact, the only thing I wanna do right now is smash. Just, find a rock and throw is at something, and let it break."

Kurt reread his words in his head. That wasn't something he'd normally say. Especially when it came to "smashing" and "breaking". But in an instant, Kurt didn't care. His emotions were too much for him right now.

Looking back, he saw Blaine smiling widely, like he had a big secret he couldn't wait to tell.

"And what's with the grin?" Kurt demanded harshly. "What, did you just find your crush swimming naked or something? What!"

"I think I found the answer to your prayer." Blaine answered. Standing from the stoop, he walked passed Kurt and walked down to his car. "Come on!" He called, and Kurt reluctantly followed.

* * *

><p>"Are you going to tell me what we're doing or is it just gonna stay some hidden mystery?" Kurt glanced out his window for the eighth time, trying to figure out where they were. They weren't in Lima, that's for sure. Maybe the outskirts? There was nothing but grass and planes around. <em>Is he taking me to Amish Country or something?<em> Kurt pondered.

"You know, this could count as kidnapping." He added shortly.

Blaine laughed, giving him a small side glance. "You got into the car willingly, Kurt."

Sighing, Kurt went back to the window, trying to figure out what exactly Blaine was planning. About ten minutes later Blaine finally stopped. It wasn't at some random farm house or anything Kurt thought. Instead, he parked below a broken down, abandoned billboard. The picture featured a cartoon man and woman, which reminded Kurt of the "Mickey and Sylvia" video staring Ewan McGregor he saw a couple years back. Kurt looked around, wondering if maybe this was where they were parking and maybe the place was somewhere else, but there was nothing around them.

"So . . . this is it?" Kurt mused, disappointed.

"No," Blaine stated, looking up towards the billboard. "That is."

Without another word, Blaine made his way toward the base, and walked around to the ladder. _He's crazy!_ Kurt thought.

"You're crazy!" He said aloud. "I'm not climbing up there! It looks like it's gonna collapse any second!"

Blaine laughed as he started to climb. "Don't be such a baby, Kurt! Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I left it in another pair of jeans," Kurt said drolly.

"Well, I'm going up. When you decide to have some fun, come and join me."

Kurt huffed as Blaine made his way up until he was out of sight, behind the billboard. Kicking the ground, Kurt knew he had two options. Climb or steal the car and go home. Of course, that would make him the biggest dick on the planet, and besides, Blaine took his keys with them. Defeated, Kurt made his way to the ladder and started climbing up. The mental bars were old, but not rusty, and pretty sturdy, so they'd probably hold his weight.

When he got to the very stop, he clung to the side for dear life. "There. I'm here. Happy? Now why on earth did you-" Kurt's words died as he looked out, and his mouth formed a small "o" as he gasp.

Kurt had been to junkyards before, but nothing like this one. The cars seemed to go on for miles and miles; some old and rusty, others practically right off the lot. It was like junk car heaven.

"I found this place when I was in high school." Blaine explained. "It's my own private little get away."

"Blaine . . . This is amazing."

"I know right? So, tell me," Blaine turned behind him, grabbing something long and silver, "how is your golf swing?"

Turning towards his friend, Kurt saw that Blaine was holding two golf clubs, and beside him were several buckets of golf balls. Smiling, Blaine handed Kurt the club, and the two started swinging.

The game didn't last long, though it seemed it went on for hours. They laughed, pulled pranks, and told jokes, and stories. They even made a game in which who could hit the most windshields or side mirrors. They went on and on until they ran out of balls to hit. When they were finally finished, the two sat on the edge, watching as the sun went down. With the cars hitting the horizon, it looked as if it were a jungle of cars; something pulled straight out of The Lion King. Kurt chuckled to that thought, loving how even now he can make Disney references.

"It's beautiful." Kurt murmured, watching as the sky changed all different colors.

"It really is," Blaine sighed. "I amazes me how - out of all the problems going on in the world and how it can seem so ugly - there are still places that make the world look the way it should. Beautiful and misunderstood."

Kurt pondered on Blaine's words until a new thought came to him. A realization, of some sort.

"Oh man," Kurt muttered.

"What?"

"I just realized . . . This was one of the first times I actually laughed, in a really long time. Like, had fun and stuff." Kurt laughed dryly, shaking his head. "God, that's so pathetic."

"No, it's not." Blaine told him. "It's the start of something new. Something better."

Kurt smiled humbly. A real, cherishing smile. They stayed there for a few more moments before heading back to town. Before dropping Kurt off at home, the two made a deal to go to that billboard every once in a while and shoot some balls.

"Hope you don't mind sharing your nirvana." Kurt teased.

"Not as long as you don't mind splitting the golf ball bill." Blaine told him, smiling warmly.

After Blaine left, Kurt headed into the house. He was stopped by his father, who questioned him on where he was and who he was with. After giving Burt the information, Kurt went to his room. Burt remained in the kitchen, partly because he was getting a drink of water before bed, and partly because he was at awe.

Maybe it was due to his lite beer he had after dinner or maybe because he was tired, but he may have actually seen his son smile. Shaking his head, Burt went off to bed, deciding he'd dig deeper into this mystery tomorrow.


	23. Chapter 23

**AN:** So it's offical, only one more chapter after this, and you'll finally find out exactly what happened to Kurt. Until then, please enjoy this chapter and tell me what you think!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt sat silently in the large leather chair, his arms crossed and shoulders bent. He didn't want to be here, but he was. Dr. Fitzgerald sat across from him, her notepad lying across her lap, her pen in her hand. She watched Kurt for a long moment. Kurt refused to meet her gaze.<p>

"Let's talk about your home life." She suggested after about ten minutes of silence.

"You already know everything about my home life." Kurt said dully.

Fitzgerald smile coyly, fixing the frame of her wire round glasses. "Humor me." She said. "How are your parents?"

"They're fine." Kurt sighed.

"Oh? Everything with your father's business is well? How is Carole? Are you two still getting along?"

"The shop is great; we have tons of business. Carole and I are great, as we've been since they first started dating."

"Good, very good. And your step-brother, Finn. How have you been getting along?"

"Same, as usual. He's a simple minded giant. I'm the smaller man who looks out for him."

"Vice versa too, I presume."

"Yes." Kurt answered shortly.

"Good, very good. Now, tell me about your friends."

"What do you want to know about them?"

"Anything you want to tell. What do you do with them? How do you like to spend your time when you're out and about?"

"I don't really go 'out and about'"," Kurt admitted. "We usual stay in, watch movies and talk about whatever. Sometimes Rachel will drag me out to this place where they have people performing. It's pretty cool."

"And you don't perform, am I correct?"

"No. I don't." Kurt answered stiffly.

Fitzgerald nodded slowly, jotting something down on her pad. Kurt rolled his eyes, as if him not performing was anything new.

"Who is your best friend, Kurt?" She asked rather abruptly.

"I'm sorry?"

"Your best friend. Who do you spend the most time thing? Who, out of all your friends, would you wanna be with the most?"

Kurt straightened, pondering on the questions. "Well, I guess I see Finn the most, but we live in the same house, so I don't think that really counts. Um, I love Rachel to death, but something's hanging out with her can be a little exhausting. And then there's Blaine."

"Blaine?" Her head shot up slowly. He had spoken about him a while back ago, but the subject of him never came up until now.

"Yeah. That guy, the one I met at Six Flags? We've been hanging out a lot. He's really cool. We talk about pretty much everything. He's down to earth, you know?"

"Do you talk to him about the incident?"

Kurt lowered his head. "No." He whispered.

Fitzgerald nodded, shifting in her seat. "So, you spend a lot of time with Blaine, yes?"

"At least three or four days of the week. I just finished up on his car, and he would come up and check out the work, and then we'd go and hangout."

"I see. Now, Kurt, tell me how you feel about, Blaine."

"How I feel? Well, I like him, obviously."

Fitzgerald lifted a brow. "You _like_ him?"

"Yeah. He's smart and nice. He's really cool and really mellow." Kurt sighed, knowing he was missing something. "He's not scared to be himself." He added, his voice cracking at the end.

"So you look up to Blaine, I see."

Kurt shifted uncomfortably. "I guess so. He's gay, and he's been bullied before, so. . . ."

"You have something to bond about." Fitzgerald scribbled the information down on her pad, clearing her throat. "Now Kurt, when you say you like Blaine, how strong is that feeling?"

"I-I'm sorry?"

"You say you like him. How much?"

"A-a lot, I guess. We're good friends."

"Do you like him more than a friend?"

"Excuse me?"

"Do you have other feelings towards Blaine? Are you attracted to him sexually? Do you like him more than a friend?"

Kurt stared at her, his voice caught deep in his throat. His mind was going in a million different directions. Like Blaine? It was impossible! They were just friends and nothing more!

"What? No! No, of course not. That's ridiculous!" Kurt stated, his mood headed south.

Fitzgerald showed no sign of regret. Staying in her same position, she looked at him, her eyes trying to dig deep into his skin.

"Really? From what you told me, it would seem quite normal. You get along, you look up to him. I'm sure he's quite handsome, so it seems possible that you'd develop feelings for him."

"Well, I haven't. And I won't. I can't like someone like that. Not anymore."

"Of course you can." She said, as if it was easy as one-two-three. She didn't know. She didn't understand. No one could understand!

"No, I can't. Okay? So stop trying to prove something that is incredibly false!"

Standing from the chair, Kurt charged out of her office, practically running towards his car.

Dr. Fitzgerald watched from her window as he sped away. It was gonna be harder than she had thought.

* * *

><p>Burt shifted from the counter, hearing a loud slam of a car door, following the slam of the front door and a very loud, aggravated "Ugh!" Walking into the kitchen was Kurt, a menacing look upon his face.<p>

"You're home early," Burt said, stating the obvious. "Bad session?"

With his back to his father, Kurt gripped the sink, his breathing heavy. "You don't even wanna know!" He growled.

"Enlighten me." Burt said, intrigued, and slightly worried.

Turning slowly, Kurt let out a long sigh as he pinched the space between in eyes. "I just can't deal with it anymore. All she does is sit there and judge me, making stupid statements and 'diagnosis'!"

"She's your shrink, Kurt. What do you want her to do, bake a pie!"

Kurt sighed once more, long and slow, his head was pounding. "She thinks I like Blaine. Like, really like him. More than a friend. Can you believe that?"

Burt was silent for a moment as he watched his son from across the way. Taking a sip from his water, he asked "Well, do you?"

Kurt huffed, throwing his hands into the air. "For the love of-" Kurt stopped himself, not even wanting to go there. "No! I don't! Honestly, is it really that impossible for two gay men to be friends! I feel like Sally after she met Harry!"

"Hey, calm down, alright? It was just a simple question. You two have been spending a lot of time together. And he is gay, so he's kinda like a mentor for ya. And you said he was bullied, so you have stuff in common. It just seems natural for you to have, ya know, feelings for one another."

Kurt breathed outward for the third time; his lungs were beginning to ache, along with his head.

"For the millionth time: Blaine and I are just friends. We spend time together, because we're friends. Yes, he's gay. And yes, he's been bullied. But he still doesn't know about me or my past."

"Do you think you're ever gonna tell him?"

Kurt lied across the island, closing his eyes. "I don't know, dad. I mean, it's not something you really say. I can't just be "Hey, Blaine, ready to see the movie? And oh yeah, I was in a coma for over a month after getting beat in the head with a metal bat!"

Burt winced, shaking his head at the memory. Though he didn't admit it, Kurt wasn't the only one who dealt with nightmares during that time.

"I wouldn't exactly go about it like that, but if you're as close as you say, I think he deserves the rights to know. He's been patient, hasn't he?"

"Amazingly." Kurt said lazily. "No questions asked."

"I think you should tell him. And you know, I'm sure you already got an earful from Dr. Fitz, but it's okay, you know. To like Blaine."

"No, it's not." Kurt told him.

"If it's about Dave-"

"It's not just about Dave, dad." Kurt said, cutting him off. "I tried to be good and be normal again. But it doesn't matter, because no matter what I do, people aren't going to accept me. I stuck out once, and look what happened? Unlike Dave, who was never bullied, Blaine was. His car was attacked by homophobes, dad. Can you imagine what it would be like for him if he started going steady with me? It would be a total nightmare, and I can't do that to him."

"Kurt, you're not some virus. You're not gonna affect the people you touch; at least not negatively."

"Oh yeah? How many phone calls did you used to get when I was in school, from people telling you about how much of a fag I was? How the hockey team gave Finn crap for being related to a freak. They were too scared to hurt, Dave, but when it came to me or my family, they didn't give a rats ass, because they knew we couldn't do anything!"

Kurt's eyes glistened in the light, his voice shaking with anger. It had been so long since he got angry over something, and lately it seemed all Kurt did was get angry.

"I'm not going to put one more person in danger. Whether it's myself, or my family, or Blaine. I have to protect them! I have to protect you!"

"No, you don't."

"Yes! Because the last people who tried to protect me almost died!" Kurt sniffed, breathing heavily. "I'm done talking about this. Blaine and I will never be together. I promise you that."

Rushing past his father, Kurt locked himself up in his room, lying down on his bed. His body shook with the ache for him to cry, but Kurt refused. He stopped crying over useless things a long time ago.


	24. Chapter 24

**AN:** I KNOW you are all going to LOVE this chapter, so PLEASE tell me how much! Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

* * *

><p>Kurt remained silent, nodding to the music. It was the end of the month, and Bread Stix was doing their annual amateur night, and of course, Rachel and Finn were present. Kurt accompanied them, though on his free will this time.<p>

Blaine was performing and the four of them made plans after the show. Rachel watched with glee was Kurt bobbed his head and tapped his foot to Blaine and the house band's rendition of The Forster Kids' "Pumped Up Kicks". She couldn't remember the last time she saw him enjoying music. His eyes were shining and he was even smiling! And then Rachel remembered who exactly was singing.

Clapping as they finished, the group waited patiently for Blaine to meet them. When he did, his hair was still damp from the sweat from the lights.

"Hey, guys." He announced, standing before them.

"Hey! Great show tonight!" Rachel exclaimed.

"Yeah, man. That song is awesome." Finn agreed.

Blaine thanked them and then turned to Kurt. "What did you think?" He asked.

Kurt thought about it for a moment. "It was catchy. Definitely enjoyable."

"I saw you tapping your feet! Ya loved it." Finn teased.

Rolling his eyes, Kurt stood from his seat. "Har har, may we leave now?"

After leaving the restaurant, they walked in groups of two. Finn and Rachel were in front, holding hands and whispering, while Kurt and Blaine were in the back, talking about his car and how he'd been taking care of it. After reaching the ice cream parlor, they sat at the wooden picnic table and ate.

Blaine fit right in. He and Rachel talked about music and performing. He and Finn talked about all different types of sports. And he and Kurt talked about basically everything. They told him stories about their High school years, and about Glee club. Though Kurt didn't contribute to the story telling, he sat up straight and smiled, like it was nothing. He even laughed at some point.

When all was said and done, they headed back to Kurt and Finn's house. Blaine, who had to be at the park early, was getting ready to depart. While the other two went into the house after saying goodbye, Kurt hung outside.

"I will say this, they are very eccentric. Rachel is very-"

"Loud? Bossy? Barbra Streisand-like?"

"Noble." Blaine laughed. "Though the Barbra thing is right too. And your brother is-"

"Big? Crazy? Bird brained-ish?"

"No!" Blaine laughed again. "Funny. They're a cleaver bunch. I like them."

Kurt shrugged, sighing softly. "Gotta love em."

"I had a really great time tonight, Kurt." Blaine said after a moment.

"Me too." Kurt agreed. "It's nice to just get away and have fun, ya know? And being with you pretty much makes the entire night a blast."

"Really?" Blaine blushed.

"Really! You're one of a kind, you know that?"

Blaine looked away, shy of what Kurt was telling him. When he looked back up, he had a glint in his eye that Kurt hadn't seen another boy have while looking at him in a long time. That sheer "I adore you" glint.

Kurt wanted to say something. To ask what the shine was about, and maybe even tease him about him. But then Blaine moved closer. Kurt knew what was happening, but he couldn't force himself to move. In a matter of seconds, Blaine's lips are on his, kissing him softly.

Kurt closed his eyes for a moment, sighing ever so slightly, before shooting back open. Pulling away, Kurt held his hand over his mouth as he stared at Blaine in awe. Blaine stepped back, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry," he said coyly, a smile breaking across his lips. "I just really wanted to do that."

Kurt stood in silence, not a word coming to mind. Finally, something snapped, and he pushed himself past Blaine.

"I have to go!" He said quickly, running to the house. Blaine called after him, but Kurt didn't listen. He ran into his house and straight into his room. Once there, Kurt locked his door before collapsing against it and onto the floor, his pulse rising. Practically shaking, Kurt touched his lips gently with the tips of his fingers.

Blaine kissed him. He leaned over and kissed him, and Kurt let it happen. Slamming his head back against the door, Kurt remained on the floor, wrapping his arms around himself, allowing himself to cry.


	25. Chapter 25

**AN:** OMIGOD. OMIGOD. OMIGOD! I am so so so sorry for the late update. Some confusion with the beta, long story short, I'm an idiot. Anyway, please enjoy this chapter. It's the big one; one you've all been waiting for. Kurt finally tells Blaine what really happened him two years ago, and why he is the way he is. Please please please tell me what you think. I did my best and I really hope you like it!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

* * *

><p>Kurt no longer answered his phone calls. Nor did he answer text messages, go out with his brother or friends, or even really spoke. Kurt became dead to the world all over again, refusing every type of human contact. He'd wake up, go to work, then go back to his room for the night. The most anyone would get out of him was when he sat down for dinner and his trips to Dr. Fitzgerald. And no, he didn't speak there either.<p>

It scared Burt to see his son his way. He tried to talk him into explaining why he was acting like that, but Kurt said nothing. Burt tried almost everything with no success, until he mentioned Blaine's name. Even if it was just for a second, Burt could see a small glimmer in Kurt's eyes, just before he went on denying everything.

It was like that night happened all again for Kurt. He was a living zombie, and Burt feared there was nothing he could do about it. That was, until he realized there was one solution. Seeing as Kurt continued to screen all Blaine's calls and messages, and even hid when he showed up at the shop or home, Burt figured he'd have to blindside his son. Using the tickets Blaine had given them, Burt rushed his family (except for Kurt) out the door for Six Flags. He called up Blaine beforehand, make sure he was off from work. When he told him the plan, Blaine was hesitant, but Burt convinced him after telling him about Kurt's condition.

When Blaine showed up at his house, he used the key Burt had given him to get into the house. He felt like a creepy stalker, practically breaking into his friend's house, but he had to do it. Running his hands through his hair, and smoothening his shirt, Blaine stood straight before knocking on Kurt's door.

A moment passed, and the door suddenly opened. Kurt's expression broke at the sight of Blaine, and Blaine momentarily pondered if this was a horrible idea.

"W-what are you doing here?" Kurt demanded softly.

"Can I come in?" Blaine asked.

"How did you get in my house?" Kurt questioned, and Blaine could see the panic his eyes.

"Your dad gave me this key." Blaine explained quickly. "May I please come in?"

"No." Kurt answered. "I'm sorry, Blaine, but I can't-"

"Please, Kurt, we need to talk." Blaine stated, cutting him off before he could shut the door on him.

"Blaine," Kurt sighed.

"Please? Kurt, if any ounce of our friendship still remains, let me in."

Blaine waited a long moment for Kurt to give his answer. After that statement, if Kurt didn't let him in, Blaine was sure they would be finished for good. Sighing, Kurt stepped aside, allowing Blaine to come in.

"What do you want?" Kurt asked, closing the door behind him.

"To know what's up." Blaine answered. "Why have you been avoiding me again? We're friends, aren't we?"

"Yes, we're friends. And I haven't been avoiding you. I've been busy."

"Don't give me that. I spoke to your dad. He said you closed everyone out; me, Finn, Rachel, even him. He said you go to work and then lock yourself up in your room. You barely even speak anymore. What's going on?"

"It's . . . it's nothing."

"No, Kurt. It's not nothing. Having a little drama fit, that's nothing. Totally blocking out your friends and family, that's big."

"Look, it doesn't concern you!"

"Yes, it does! Kurt, I care about you. You're like my best friend, seeing you like this . . . it hurts!"

Kurt was silent, not even bothering to look at Blaine. Sighing, Blaine asked the one question that's been on his mind since the beginning.

"Is it because of me?" Kurt said nothing. "Are you acting this way, because I kissed you?" Again, silence. "Kurt . . . I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it to happen. I obviously didn't think you'd react like this. Look, we can act like it never happened. We'll just go back to being friends, hanging out and talking. I shouldn't . . . I shouldn't have done that."

Kurt looked to the ground, shaking his head. Blaine stepped forward, reaching for him, but Kurt jerked back.

"Kurt. . . . Please, I'm so sorry. I just . . . I like you, okay? I really do and I'm sure it must be weird, since we're friends and all, but I just feel something when I'm with you. Something I've never felt before. And it's good. It's a really, really good feeling. And I don't know if you feel it too. You obviously don't, since you're acting like I'm about to hit you every time I step closer. I just . . . I promise! I won't do anything. We can be friends, and I won't let it get weird. Just please, don't shut me out."

"Blaine I . . . I can't."

"Can't what? Please, Kurt, I'm sorry I fell for you, but don't let it ruin our friendship. I promise never to kiss you again or touch you, or even look at you in an intimate way. Just, don't close me out. You're probably the only person I can relate to and actually talk to. If I lose you, I might as well just go back to New York and stay there."

"Who said that was a bad thing?" Kurt joked, his voice cracking. "Ohio isn't exactly star central."

Taking a deep breath, Kurt sighed heavily. Blaine could see the twinkle of tears in his eyes, but said nothing. Finally, Kurt spoke, and his words nearly pushed Blaine over the edge.

"I wanna be with you, Blaine."

"What?" Blaine asked, pondering if he heard him right.

"I like you. I tried to force myself not to, but it didn't work. I feel what you feel, and it scares me."

Blaine stepped closer, his voice almost a whisper. "It scares me too. But, it's okay. We can do it together, ya know? Go slow."

Kurt shook his head closer, small droplets of tears began to fall down his cheeks. "No." He murmured. "I can't, Blaine. You don't understand. I can't like you."

"Why not?"

"Everyone I care about gets hurt." Kurt said. Blaine cocked his head to the side. Kurt just wasn't making any sense.

"What do you mean? How can they get hurt?"

Kurt sniffed, doing his best to stand straight. "You know how I don't talk about my high school years? Or how when Rachel or Finn brings something up, I won't say a word? There's a reason for that. I wasn't always so queit and mean. I used to talk, and laugh, and have fun. My life almost seemed like a fairytale, only backwards."

"Will you tell me it?" Blaine asked softly.

Kurt nodded slowly. They sat on the edge of his bed. Blaine turned towards Kurt, who sat looking straight. Clearing his throat, he started talking.

"I was popular, you know? I mean, when school first started out, anyone associated with Glee club was pretty much banished into Loserville, but we stuck in there. We performed and soon enough, people started to love us."

Blaine smiled softly. "You were in Glee club?"

Kurt nodded. "Rachel and Finn were the leads, but I was an important asset. I was wanted, if not needed. It was a great feeling. Ooh my senior year . . . I had everything! Glee club was practically on top of the popularity charts; we were shoo-ins for the title; I had amazing friends; and an even more amazing boyfriend."

"Boyfriend?" Blaine mimicked slowly, shocked by the word.

Again, Kurt nodded in response. "Dave and I, we were a strange couple. He was tall and meaty. He played for the football team and a lot of people were scared of him. I was the Glee clubs countertenor and was practically skin and bone. Even Finn was shocked when we started dating, we looked very odd, after all. But we were happy. He was out and proud, and I couldn't ask for anything better for a boyfriend."

"Did you love him?"

Kurt smiled shyly, practically blushing. "Did I care for him? Yes. Did I love him like a best friend? Of course. Did I hope and dream one day we'd had that white picket fence type of marriage? Absolutely, but so does everyone with their first boyfriend or girlfriend. I needed him and he needed me; we were there for one another. Yeah, we got crap from people, but we never let it bother us. We always had each other, ya know? We wouldn't let them get to us."

"So what changed?" Blaine partly whispered.

Kurt took a deep breath; his body practically shaking when he let it out. "We always thought their rude comments and stupid threats were nothing but sheer homophobia. We never took them literally. Not even when they said they would kill us. We never realized they weren't kidding, and that they were planning something."

Blaine's mouth dropped, though he said nothing.

"It was prom night. Dave and I went as a couple, of course. We ignored the sneers and looks and just danced. We were with out friends and refused to let them ruin our night. Dave and our friend, Santana, were running for prom king and queen. Dave won, and instead of Santana, some jerks rigged it to where I would be the queen. It hurt, of course. I mean, gay or not, I'm no queen, no matter what the slang may be. Anyway, Dave refused to let them get to me. He convinced me that instead of running away in tears, I had to stand strong and prove to them they can't touch me.

"So I went out there and they placed the crown on my head, and people clapped. Like, they actually clapped - like with joy and stuff. Dave and I danced as king and queen then. It was a sweet moment. We were laughing and even kissed at one point. We were having an amazing time. After we left, we walked through the parking lot of the school holding hands. We were talking and laughing, deciding whether we should go back to his house or go out for ice cream or something like that.

"We were almost to the car when we heard it. The emotionless banging of a bat slamming into a headlight. Startled, we looked around, and sure enough, there they were. They surrounded us in a circle, just like the movies. It was mostly guys from the hockey team, but there were some soccer and baseball guys there too. Even football players. And then their leader showed: Brett. We sat next to one another in English; I didn't think much of him, aside from being a homeless-smelling druggie.

"Turns out he was a raging homophobe, and our relationship set him off the edge. I think it all started because I checked him out once in ninth grade, but that was a long time ago, nor did it matter then. Anyway, they circled us and just kept coming closer until we were right in the middle.

'_Sorry about your headlight, Karofsky._'Brett said, holding the Louisville slugger in his hands.

"I could tell Dave was confused, and probably scared. I was too, and I'm sure it showed.

'_What do you want, Brett?'_ I finally asked and Brett merely laughed.

'_I want you two fags out of my school_.' He answered.

'_It's prom night, school is gonna be over in a week_.' Dave pointed out.

"Brett laughed sickly, tapping the bat against his hand. '_Sorry, but I can't wait that long. I can't deal with the sick, fucked up way you look at one another in halls, or how you two Ladyboy's like to kiss before each class, or just the smell of you two around me. It seems like sweat and hell; it makes me wanna throw up_!'

'_We're not gonna stop just because you don't like it!_'I stepped up, practically shouting in his face.

"Brett said nothing. He just stood there, smiling. '_Oh, but you will_.' He told us, his voice grave and dark.

"His expression changed then. His smile was gone and his eyes became black; as if there was no soul behind them. He ordered for the others to get us, and that's exactly what they did. Flashes of red and black came and Dave and I were separated in an instant. I guess, because we were so far into the parking lot, no one could hear us in the school. We tried, though. We screamed and cried for someone to come and stop us, but nothing happened. I even shouted for God, but he didn't answer either. So instead I had to listen as they beat my boyfriend senseless, just before they did the same to me.

"I'm not sure how long it went on for. Maybe five minutes, maybe an hour, but it just seemed to go on and on and on. I could hear Dave fighting back. He was strong, ya know, so he could take a few of them. He shouted my name, trying to break free so he could help me. But that only made them fight harder. I was no match for them, of course. Even when I did try to fight back, they just punched harder and kicked faster; I was too weak to stop them.

"Finally when it stopped, I was lying on the ground in my own blood. My clothes had been torn and all I could hear were the words they were shouting. 'loser', 'dicklick', 'cocksucker', and most of all: 'faggot'. They loved that word, because it hit the hardest. My eyes were burry from tears, but I could just see Dave a few feet away. They were still kicking him, trying to keep him down. At that point, I honestly thought they were gonna kill us. I could hear Brett laughing as he stood above me. Looking up, I saw him smile, just before he raised the bat.

'_I hope you enjoyed your sick life, faggot, cause you're done living it_.' That was the last thing he said before slamming the bat down on my head.

"I woke up from a coma for a month and a half later, not remember anything. I was scared, of course, having no recollection of the event that took place. I had bits and pieces, but everything else was blank. It wasn't until months of therapy and seeing Dr. Fitzgerald almost every day that I began remembering. That was also when I was diagnosed with PTSD; Posttraumatic stress disorder. I would had dreams of the event or even flashbacks. I could hear their voices and see their faces, as if I were reliving it all over again."

"The day in the shop," Blaine breathed out. "When you saw the licenses plate."

"I hadn't had a relapse in so long. Seeing that . . . it set me off."

"Oh my . . . God, Kurt, I'm so sorry. W-what happened next? With the assholes who did it and with Dave?"

"They were all arrested, thankfully. Charged with hate crimes and attempted murder, they all got fifty to life. Brett, of course, got two life sentences and is hopefully getting his ass ripped apart by someone in jail, if I may be so bold."

"And Dave?"

"Dave . . . despite getting beat twice as bad as me, he awoke from his coma in half the time. He visited me while I was in mine, but ended up moving away before I woke up. His parents though it was better if they left town, ya know? Left what happened behind. Last time I heard, he was going to college Upstate."

"He just got up and left? After everything?"

"Finn used to tell me he cried when he found out. But he was only seventeen and didn't have any other family around here, so he didn't have a choice. He tried to write and call me, but I was still too weak to even realize what was going on. We just lost touch and that was that."

"Kurt, I . . . I don't know what to say. I'm so, so sorry."

Kurt held a hand up, stopping him. "Don't be. It was a long time ago."

"But Brett was right." Blaine spoke after a moment. "You have stopped living your life. I mean, you don't sing or perform anymore. You dad always says for you to go out and be with your friends, which you never do. You're letting him win!"

"It's not that easy." Kurt sighed. "I lost everything since then. I can't stand to see any of my old friends, because I know it'll just be a constant reminder of how they're moving on and I'm stuck here. I feel ashamed to listen to musicals, like I'm just that same old fag who deserved to get his ass beat. I'm scared as shit to be outside in public, fearing someone will go after me again for being who I am. You don't understand!"

"Maybe not!" Blaine argued. "But I know pretending to be someone other than yourself is basically showing them they beat you down to the lowest point."

Kurt shook his head, refusing to look at his friend. "Everyone I've cared about has gotten hurt. Finn's been threatened. My dad used to get phone calls. Carole and Rachel were attacked in the mall once, because they were seen with the faggot. And then with what happened to Dave. . . . I can't let anyone else get hurt. So I lock myself away, making sure no one see's a reason to hate me or anyone I'm with."

"Do you really think that will happen? That someone will go after me if we start going out? Kurt, unless you've forgotten, I'm already been bashed, and I really don't care what they think. I wanna live my life the way I want to live it, not the way they want me to."

"It's easy for you. You're handsome and popular."

"And you weren't when they attacked you? Kurt, do you listen to yourself when you talk? You don't have to be scared and you don't have to hide. You can be yourself; I promise you, no one is going to hurt you again. Yes, some people may not like it, but you can't let them push you down. Not again."

"I don't know if I can do that. Stand up strong and be brave."

"Let me help you." Blaine said. Kurt looked at him, small tears running down his red cheeks. "We can do this together. I can help you." Kurt was silent, not knowing what to say. "We can do this, Kurt. We won't let them touch us."

Sniffing, Kurt gave a small nod. Reaching forward, Blaine took Kurt's hand. Kurt looked at him and with his eyes shining, Kurt smiled. Maybe all hope wasn't lost.


	26. Chapter 26

**AN:** I hope you like this chapter. The next one will be alot more fun. Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>So that was the way it was. Blaine liked Kurt and Kurt liked him. And instead of pushing Blaine away like he originally planned too, they were to remain friends, and work things out. Blaine wanted to help, and if anyone knew how Blaine worked, it was that he didn't give up until the job was finished.<p>

Kurt was still a little edgy about the whole idea. The last thing he needed was for another person to give him false hope that anything will actually change. When Sunday morning came around, Kurt wanted nothing more than just hide underneath the covers and sleep all day long, but he knew Blaine would come and find him. Unless Kurt was dying, he had no excuse on why not to show.

Pulling himself out of bed, he dressed and headed out to the Lima Bean, where he found Blaine waiting with two cups of coffee.

"You ordered for me?" Kurt asked, taking his seat.

"You're late." Blaine said with a smirk.

"Time escaped me," Kurt shrugged. Blaine smiled, but said nothing. "So, what's on the agenda today? It's your one day off, is it not?"

"Sadly, yes. How are your therapy sessions going?"

Kurt took a long sip of his coffee, gripping the cup tightly. "Same old, same old. I'm failing at life and Dr. Fitzgerald is greatly displeased with that."

"How are you failing at life?" Blaine raised a brow, a strange laugh escaping his lips.

"Apparently I'm not following her instructions. I swear, she's treating me like I'm a life sized Ken Doll, you know? Handle with care and all that crap."

"Wait . . . instructions? You mean she's giving you like guidelines or something?"

"Basically. She said it'll help me get back to the way I used to me." Kurt took another sip, rolling his eyes at the statement. "Fat chance of that ever happening."

"What does she want you to do?"

Kurt shrugged. "Normal stuff. Listen to the music I used do, hang out with my old friends, do what I used to before the accident."

Blaine nodded, listening intently. "And you don't wanna do any of this because . . . ?"

"Because that's not me anymore, Blaine. I mean, look at me. No crazy patterns, no scarves. I got some tee shirts and some jeans, and I'm fine with that. This is me, not that clothes obsessed drama king Dr. Fitzgerald is trying to make me."

"But this isn't you." Blaine assured. "You became this person, because you're scared of being hurt for being the real you. So you push away all that matters and pretend to be someone you're not, and you act proud of it, but deep down I'm sure you're dying inside."

Kurt stared down at the table, saying nothing. It wasn't the first time he's heard that accusation. And whether it were true or not, it didn't matter. He could change it if he wanted to, what did it matter to anyone else if he doesn't obsessive over scarves or listen to show tunes? It was his life!

"What are you doing?" He asked after a moment, watching as Blaine pulled out a pad and pen from his bag.

"Taking notes." Blaine answered. "Now, what did you use to do for fun?"

"What? Blaine, what are you doing?"

"Just doing some research, now come on, talk to me. What did you used to do for fun?"

Kurt sighing, thinking of the answer. "I used to love shopping. Whether it was or a guy or girl, I didn't care. I even gave Rachel and Mercedes advice. I was like the Dr. Phil of clothing."

Blaine smiled, jotting it down on the paper.

"I was in Glee club, as you know. So singing. I really don't know what else to say. I hung out, watch movies. Everything a normal teenager did."

"Do you know which friends are still in Ohio?" Blaine asked suddenly.

"Um . . . I think Mercedes is. I'm not sure about Tina. Don't get me started on Brittany, I have _no_ idea what happened that girl. We kind of lost touch."

"Can we get in touch with them?"

"What . . . No! Come on, Blaine, don't drag them into this."

"Whose dragging? I think a pleasant little shopping spree with your old pals would be a fun idea."

"I guess we have different definitions of 'fun' then! No, no way."

"I told you I'm going to help you, whether you like it or not. Now, you can either agree to it and we'll call the girls up and head to the mall, or I can sedate you and handcuff you to me for the entire day. Which is it?"

Kurt leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest tightly. "This is incredibly unfair, you know. What happened to not pushing me?"

"This isn't pushing. It's just a light shove in the right direction." Blaine smiled kindly; Kurt hated that smile. It made him wanna give it all up and just kiss him, and _that_ was a bad idea if he ever had one.

Sighing, Kurt gave in. "Fine, we'll go. But no girls! Just you and me."

"Alright, sounds fair. We'll go slow."

"I hate you so much." Kurt breathed, shaking his head.

Blaine stood from his seat, grabbing his bad and coffee. "I know, but we're still best friends. Now come on! To the mall we go!"

Turning around, Blaine hurried out of the coffee shop. Groaning, Kurt followed.


	27. Chapter 27

**AN:** OMIGOD. OMIGOD. OMIGOD! I am so so so sorry for the late update. My computer crashed and I just got it back maybe an hour or two ago. Please enjoy this chapter! I worked hard on it and thank you to my beta for dealing with me! Enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

* * *

><p>Kurt couldn't remember the last time he stepped foot into the Lima Mall. Two stories, over a hundred shops, a huge food court, and full of people. Kurt's blood presser rose before they even found a place to park.<p>

Blaine, of course, was all smiles, acting like this was the best idea he ever had, while Kurt, of course, thought the exact opposite. He hated it, he really did. He spent all his time trying to avoid situations like this, and here was Blaine, practically dragging him into it. But despite himself and what the voice in his head was screaming, Kurt knew Blaine was right. If he ever wanted get better - truly better - he had to get back into the habit. No one said it'd be easy, but he had to at least try.

They stopped in the middle, looking around at their choices.

"So where to?" Blaine asked. "Macy's? Sears? Maybe some Abercrombie and Fitch? They just opened up an American Eagle at the far end."

Kurt shifted nervously, his eyes wondering. So many people. So, so many people. In reality, they were all just minding their own business, but to Kurt, each and every one of them were watching him, gawking - like they knew his little secret.

"Kurt?" Blaine asked, breaking Kurt from his thoughts.

"What? I-I don't care, just choose."

"Kurt-" Blaine breathed, though Kurt cut him off.

"Just choose, Blaine!" Kurt hissed quietly. "The faster we do this, the faster we can go home." He added, mostly to himself.

Sighing, Blaine looked around, trying to find somewhere most fitted. Smiling at his choice, Blaine took Kurt's hand, leading him to the store. Kurt looked around, wondering if anyone saw this action, though he never pulled away. Looking up, Kurt caught the word "Forever21" before being tugged inside.

He had never been in the store before, since it was only added last summer. Rachel mentioned going in once or twice, though it really wasn't her style, stating it was more for hipster than vintage.

"Hmmm, I like this." Blaine said, looking around.

Removing his hand from Blaine's grasp, Kurt glanced around. Everything was off the shoulder, or silly tee-shirts, or anything with stripes. They went deeper into the store, coming upon the men's section. It wasn't tacky, so to say. Some outfits were actually very well put together, but it just wasn't Kurt's style. Well, at least what his style used to be. Oh how he used to rock the bowties and scarves. Marc Jacobs was his lover and Alexander McQueen was his bitch. Now he hung around with Levi jeans, or even by chance, some cheap H&M style tee's.

Kurt turned towards Blaine, hearing a sharp gasp. Blaine's eyes were fixated on the mannequin in front of him. It was pretty plan: it wore a white and blue stripped sailor shirt, boat shoes, khakis, and a blazer.

"What?" Kurt asked.

"This blazer . . . is fabulous!"

"Huh?" Kurt lifted a brow and watched as his friend went around, and continued to gasp after every blazer he found.

"Kurt, do you see all these? They're amazing!" Blaine gushed, taking one off the rack and placing it around himself.

Kurt remained silent, watching Blaine run around the section like a kid in a candy shop. Grabbing am arm full, Blaine ran off to the dressing room, nearly tripping on the way. Kurt followed, taking a seat beside the mirror. Blaine came out shortly after, modeling one of the blazers.

"You really have a thing for blazers, don't you?" Kurt questioned, smirking slightly.

"What can I say, I went to private school." Blaine shrugged, heading back to his cubby, replacing the first blazer with a second one. "Besides, don't deny the fact that I look incredibly sexy in one."

Kurt rolled his eyes, smiling fondly. "Maybe, but not in that one." Said Kurt.

Blaine cocked his head, looking back and forth between his reflection in the mirror and Kurt. "What's wrong with it?" He questioned, pulling it tighter.

Kurt shrugged. "It's just ugly."

"Oh, come on! You can't say 'it's just ugly'!" Blaine argued. "What's wrong with it?"

Kurt stared blankly at the blazer. There was a lot Kurt could say, but he refused to say any of it. "Bad color." He answered instead.

Leaving with a huff, Blaine returned with another blazer. "How about this one?"

"Meh."

"Come on! If you're going to be against it, I want answers! Real ones!"

Kurt sighed, crossing his legs as he leaned back against his chair. "The stitching is all wrong." He told him. "It should be double, rather than triple, and it just makes it look bigger than it actually is."

Blaine went back to the cub and switched blazers. One after another Kurt found some kind of flaw in them. Ugly color, wrong stitching, too many buttons, not enough button - the list just went on. By the time they finished, Blaine ran out of blazers to try on.

"Why don't you look and find one since you're so picky!" Blaine asked tiredly.

Kurt hesitated, but looked around. There had to be one that fit his approval. Lord, Kurt forgot how fussy he was when it came to clothing. Back when he went shopping, it would either be the best or he'd make his own styles, which of course, to him, were better than the originals. What could he say? He had amazing taste.

Finally, Kurt came up upon a blazer that wasn't too horrible. It was black with silver buttons. Very plain and simple, but perfect for Blaine. Grabbing Blaine's size, he headed back to the dressing room.

"Here, this should do." He said nonchalantly, passing it onto Blaine, who placed it on quickly. "See? Good stitching; the color goes well with your complexion, and it's the perfect length."

"Ya think?" Blaine asked, modeling himself in the mirror.

"It's not thinking, Blaine, it's knowing. Trust me, this is the one."

Blaine turned then, smiling brightly. "You're right." He announced. "You're a genius, Kurt!"

Kurt smiled softly, rolling his eyes. "Yes, yes. Now go buy it so we can go home! This place gives me headaches."

After purchasing the blazer, the boys made their way out of the mall. Kurt sighed with relief, thankful Blaine didn't want to check out any other stores.

"So, did you have fun?" Blaine asked, taking his place in the drivers seat.

Kurt looked to him, a brow raised. "As much fun as Finn would have at a day spa." He murmured, buckling his seatbelt.

"Come on, it wasn't that bad. You practically made it your mission to find me a blazer you approved of."

"Well, excuse me for not watching to walk around with someone dressed like an absolute fool."

"Suuuuuuuure." Blaine laughed. "Whatever you say, Kurt."

Not wanting to continue the argument, Kurt looked out the window, his arms folded across his chest. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, shopping with Blaine today brought him back to the old days, back when he used to own the mall and rock every outfit he found. Today meant nothing, and he knew that. The only reason he helped Blaine out was because each blazer he chose looked beyond hideous. But then again, unknown to Kurt, that was exactly what Blaine had in mind.

Who would've known it'd actually work?


	28. Chapter 28

**AN:** Hey guys! Please enjoy and tell me what you think!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>Kurt hopped down the steps of the long staircase, carelessly flowing into the kitchen. Burt sat eating his toast, drinking coffee, and reading the morning paper. He glanced up shortly, watching as Kurt stood before him, a solemn look upon his face.<p>

"Problem, Kurt?" He asked, sipping from his mug.

Kurt sighed, leaning against the island. "Yes and no." He answered. "Where did you put my stuff? You know, the things I packed away after the accident? Thing's I wanted to throw away, but Carole convinced you to save."

Burt sat in an almost shocked-like state before rising from his seat to retrieve said boxes from the basement. With random enthusiasm, he brought up almost everything he could carry.

"I just need the music, dad." Kurt told him, his eyes wide with the amount of things his father carried. He knew Burt was stronger, having gotten even stronger from his heart attack, but most of these boxes were filled with clothes and magazines; they had to of weighted a ton!

"Oh. Sorry, got a little carried away, I guess. Um, here!" Burt pushed forward two large boxes, each filled with records and CD's from Kurt's past. "If you don't mind me asking, why do you want any of these? The last time you even mentioned them was the day we packed them away."

"Blaine's decided to be my somewhat guardian angel slash mentor and is trying to get me into all the things I used to be. A couple days ago he dragged me to the mall."

"_You_? To the _mall_? I can't even get you to go Christmas shopping with me!"

"Yeah, well, he can be wildly persuasive. So first was shopping, and now he's making me listen to my old music. He's even coming over to make sure I actually do it. I swear, part of me thinks he actually believes he can make some kind of change. Anyway, I better brings these upstairs; he'll be here any minute."

Kurt took a hold of the boxes and headed back upstairs.

"Hey, Kurt!" Burt called after him. Kurt leaned back, looking over his shoulder. "That Blaine . . . he's a pretty good kid."

"I know," Kurt said, "That's the problem!"

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, Blaine showed up. He was wearing the blazer he had bought at the mall, and a matching tie. He had no particular reason for it, aside for his fetish for them. Kurt found this highly amusing, of course. After giving permission, Blaine started going through the boxes of music. There were records of Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, and even Patti LuPone. He found all different movie soundtracks, such as Westside Story, The Sound Of Music, and several Broadway soundtracks, such as Evita and Wicked.<p>

Other CD's of artist such as Madonna, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, and songs from the comedic dance duo, Fred and Ginger. It was an amazing stash and Blaine was surprised Kurt could give it all up so easily.

"So, what should we listen to first?" He asked cheerfully, folding his hands perfectly against his lap.

"Your idea, you choose."

Blaine thought for a second, shuffling through the boxes blindly before coming up with something. It was a blank CD with the words "SENIOR YEAR" written across it with permanent marker. Shrugging, Blaine placed it into CD player, and a few seconds later, the music began. It was a Yeah Yeah Yeahs song mixed with some Michael Jackson.

"This ain't half bad."

Kurt remained still, his face pale. "C-can you switch CD's please?"

Blaine stopped the player, opening the flap, and waited for the CD to stop spinning. "Something the matter?"

"That was the CD I made for my graduation party. The one I didn't get to play, seeing as I didn't have a party, nor attend graduation. I'd rather not listen to it."

"Oh. Okay. Hey! There's a DVD in here. 'GLEE FAVORITES'?"

"No!" Kurt jumped, taking the DVD from Blaine's hand. "This is to never be heard! Just . . . Forget you even saw it!" Tossing the disk into his draw, Kurt hurried back to his bed, muzzling through the box, searching for any other CD's he didn't want played.

"Kurt, we're doing this so you can get better. We have to listen to something."

"Baby steps, remember?" He stated, giving Blaine a small, warning look. Pulling out one of the Britney CD's, he handed it to Blaine, and told him to play it.

"She's gotten much better as the years went on." Blaine said. "Though I'm more of a Katy Perry guy myself."

"I heard a snippet of her song "Hold It Against Me". . . ." Kurt shook his head slowly, sighing heavily. He missed his music and he missed it bad. "We actually performed a Britney song in Glee."

"Oh?"

"'Toxic'? Our teacher wasn't very thrilled about it. It kind of started a sex riot in the gym."

"Sex riot?" Blaine mimicked.

"Come to think of it, a lot of our performances started riots. . . ."

"Boy do I wish I went to your school! I was in an acapella group back at my private school. We, uh, we were pretty much rock stars."

"Oh really now?"

"I guess you could say I carried my love for acapella music with me. It made me a hit at the park."

"How are the Warblers doing?"

"Fantastic. They miss you, though. They keep asking me when I'm gonna bring you around again."

"Tell them to be patient and maybe I'll make a surprise appearance."

Blaine smiled, allowing the conversation to end. They finished off Britney and went straight into Madonna, then Gaga. They had to cut the lady off, as it was just too much for Kurt. He used to be such a big fan, and listening to her music after everything that happened was just too painful.

So instead he went straight into the Broadway songs and Fred and Ginger CD's. He tried to spice it up a bit and get Kurt to dance around with him, but it seemed like an ill-fated idea. Whether he knew the lyrics or not, Kurt had no intention on singing along nor spinning around like an idiot with Blaine.

"_Heaven! I'm in heaven! And my heart beat's so that I can hardly speak!_ Come on, Kurt, join me!"

Grabbing his hand, Blaine pulled Kurt off the bed and stood in front of him. Holding both now, Blaine moved side to side, trying to get Kurt to dance. It wasn't working, of course, and just made them both look silly and awkward. But that, of course, didn't stop Blaine of smiling and singing.

"_And I seem to find the happiness I seek, when we're out together dancing cheek to cheek!_"

"Alright, you had your fun, now let me go." Kurt argued.

"Oh, the fun's only begun. Come on, Kurt, where is your soul? Listen to that sax! It's great!"

"Yes, yes. It's very lovely." Ripping his hands away, Kurt strutted back to his bed. "Now, go bug off."

"_Oh, I'd love to go out fishing, in a river or a creek, but I don't enjoy it half as much, as dancing cheek to cheek!_" Rushing over, Blaine pulled Kurt back just before he could sit, causing Kurt to call back against him. "_Dance with me, I want my arm about you. That charm, about you, will carry, me through - to heaven! I'm in heaven!_"

"You'll be in a lot of pain soon if you don't let me go!" Kurt gritted through his teeth, trying to shake away from the singing wonder.

Taking his hand, Blaine spun Kurt around so he would face him, and pulled him close, slamming their chests together.

"_And I seem to find the happiness I seek, when we're out together swinging cheek to cheek!_"

Releasing him, Blaine started dancing around, doing his best interpretations of swing dancing as he could. Kurt could help but to laugh with amusement. For the second time, Blaine grabbed his hand, intending to spin Kurt around, though this time, Kurt allowed him, his laughter growing stronger from having almost hit into his dresser.

Smiling, he watched as Blaine jumped up on his bed, continuing to dance and sing, not caring how crazy and loony he looked. For a split second, Kurt felt something he almost new to him: sheer joy and affection.

"_And I seem to find the happiness I seek, when we're out together dancing - out together dancing - oooouuutttt together dancing cheeeeek to cheeeeek!_"

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><p>Burt sat in the living room, humming along softly to the loud music coming from upstairs. Carole, who was just now coming home from work, nearly covered her ears due to the volume of it.<p>

"What's going on?" She asked Burt.

"Blaine and Kurt are listening to music." He told her.

"What?" She called out.

"Blaine and Kurt are listening to music!" He repeated louder.

"Oh! This music? I thought Kurt hated this stuff!"

"I guess he changed his mind!" He shrugged. "Wanna dance?"

Laughing, Carole took her husband hand and began to slowly swing. Maybe things weren't gonna be so bad after all.


	29. Chapter 29

**AN:** Heeeeeey guys. Um...sorry about late update. I guess you can say I've been getting a little lazy, and my beta has had a lot to do, so we're both kinda behind. But don't freat, because I have a special surprise for everyone (it involves Gimme More!) So until next time, enjoy!

**I do not own Klaine or Glee. If I did, a lot of things would be different.**

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><p>"I hate you!" Kurt gritted through his teeth as he and Blaine made their way through the mall. Kurt didn't know what was worse: having to go <em>back<em> to the mall (making it the second time in one week) or going there to meet up with Rachel and Mercedes. Don't get him wrong, deep down he was excited to see his old friend, but with every step he took, he couldn't help but to think this was just one big bad idea.

Blaine laughed, releasing his grip upon Kurt's forearm. He didn't want to force him, but the last thing he needed was for Kurt to start running. Blaine was fast and all, but Kurt was an Olympic champ compared to him, who couldn't even make the High school track team. "No, you don't." He replied.

"Oh, but I do! So fricken much! More than any designer would to someone who wore white after labor day!"

Blaine gave Kurt a sideways glance, not even bothering to hide it smirk. "That was a pretty gay comeback, Kurt."

Kurt's eyes blazed. If they weren't in a public area, he'd smack the little hobbit out of him. "Bite me!" He stage-whispered.

Blaine stopped and turned, facing his friend. "Only if you play nicely," he teased, "Now look, the girls are going to be in that store over there. I'm not going to force you, alright? It was my job to get you to the mall, but you have to walk in there."

"You just don't get it," Kurt breathed, "You don't understand how hard it is to be here and to go see her."

"Hey, hey, look at me." Blaine stepped closer, his hand lightly cupping Kurt's cheek. "You're gonna be great, and everything gonna be fine, I promise."

Remembering where they were, Kurt smacked Blaine's hand away. Clearing his throat, Blaine backed away.

"So, are you ready?"

Kurt sighed. Whether he liked it or not, this was the plan. As much as he wanted to cut and run, he just couldn't. Something was keeping him there. Maybe it was Blaine or maybe it was the fact deep, deep down, he wanted to be normal again, he didn't know. Either way, he was stuck there. Nodding, he followed Blaine to where the girls were.

* * *

><p>The last time Kurt had seen Mercedes was at Breadstix. Finn was holding a going away party for Rachel and everyone from Glee was there, even Mr. Schue. There was singing and dancing, food and drinks; even a bit of alcohol. Everyone was laughing, relaxing, and having a great time. Everyone, except for Kurt. He had only gotten out of the hospital a few weeks earlier and wasn't ready for this type of exposure yet. Burt suggested he stay home and rest, but he didn't wanna miss saying goodbye to one of his best friends. Rachel stayed at the hospital almost as long as Kurt's own family had and she was about to leave to go to an entirely different state; there was no way Kurt was going to miss out on the party.<p>

He didn't dance or sing; he mostly sat in the corner, smiling dimly as his friends enjoyed themselves. Mercedes and Tina did their best to cheer him up and get him to relax, but it was pointless. Even Brittany gave some effort, before going back Santana, who was in an almost identical state as Kurt, though somewhat more lively. She would talk and even danced a couple times with Brit and Puck, though she was quieter than she had ever been.

Finally, everyone gave up and went to do their own thing. Tina went back to Mike, Mercedes back to Shane, and Kurt sat just there, waiting for the night to end. When it finally did, everyone said their goodbyes and exchanged hugs. Kurt skipped that part and headed straight for his dad's van. He loved them all, but it was too much for him. He couldn't stand to stay there and be joyful, yet sad, and hug them all like there's no tomorrow. He couldn't stand to have his father help him with his crutches, receiving hug after hug would've been torture.

But the last time he actually spoke to Mercedes was on the phone while he was at work. They had made plans to hang out and see a movie, but Kurt had to cancel. That was the third time he cancelled in a month. He had promised he'd give her a call the next time he was free, but he didn't. That was a year and a half ago. She called a couple times since then, but he always missed it. Kurt figured she had given up and moved on. Why she was here today and how Rachel convinced her to go, was beyond him. Part of him thought she would be angry and sass him for being an idiot and not getting back to her, but the moment their eyes locked from across the way, a bright smile appeared across her face, and she made a b-line straight for him.

Her hair was pin-straight, framing her face perfectly. Her outfit was magnificent fitting her curves, showing off her body. She looked as if she had lost a bit a weight, making her look even more beautiful.

Kurt smiled, at awe at how amazing his old friend looked. Walking closer, the four met in the middle, each of them smiling.

"Hi, Kurt." Mercedes greeted, her eyes simmering.

"Mercedes," Kurt looked up her and down slowly. "You look great."

"So do you." Mercedes looked beside her friend. "You must be Blaine."

Blaine reached forward, shaking Mercedes' hand. "Yeah! It's nice to finally meet you, I've heard so much."

"Well, isn't this lovely?" Rachel spoke up, gushing over the reunion. "I say as get the show on the road. Food court anybody?"

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><p>Kurt sat quietly around the table, stiffing his chuckle as he sipped from his diet coke. They had been there for nearly two hours, going around the table and talking about themselves; Rachel and Mercedes reminiscing about old times, and telling Blaine all about Glee club. Kurt joined in now and then, but mostly listened. So far, Kurt learned that Mercedes was the president of Lima Community College Drama club, having landed the lead of Maria in their upcoming production of West Side Story. She and Shane had broken up after graduation, with him going down to Texas to play football. She had several suitors, but was enjoying her single life.<p>

Kurt was proud of her, he truly was. He was glad to see her succeed in what she loved. Mercedes also gave him info on the others. Tina, who graduated a year after them, was also going to LCC, and was still going out with Mike, who was studying dance at Juilliard. Quinn went off to Boston and Puck joined the military. Artie went to Virginia Tech. And both Santana and Brittany were studying at Rosedale, and Brittany intended to transferring out to go to University of Okalahoma for dancing.

"Seems like everyone has moved on," Kurt mumbled, "I'm so proud of them. They're all doing what they wanted."

"But what about you, K? What are you doing? You're not in school or anything; what have you been doing?"

Kurt sat straight, swallowing hard. "I work a lot." He told her. "I work at my dad's shop most days. I make a ton of money, which is great. Other than, I'm just really around."

"He's been coming out with me lately." Blaine announced. "I mean, we've been hanging out. Ya know? Not . . . like that. We're not . . . I'm gonna go get another drink. Refills anyone?" Blaine cleared his throat, standing awkwardly.

"I'll come with you!" Rachel jumped up, following him over to the soda section.

Mercedes and Kurt sat silently together for a long moment, neither knowing what to say. Oh how far they had fallen from being best friends to near strangers now.

"You look good, Kurt." She told him. "So much better from the last time I saw you."

Kurt smiled softly. "Thank you. And again, you look fantastic. You always knew how to dress."

"Now until you came into my life." She insisted.

Kurt placed a hand over his heart. "I did my best, but it wasn't much work. A straightened and some vibrant colors. You did the rest."

Mercedes smiled, blushing at the memory. Looking back, they watched as Blaine and Rachel stood at the counter, laughing and talking over something unheard by the others.

"He seems like a nice guy." Mercedes spoke. "He's good for you."

"He's great, but we're not like that."

"I see the way he looks at you, Kurt. The way every girl in the entire world wants to be looked at. He likes you."

"I know he does." Kurt told her.

"And what? Honey don't tell me you don't like him. I mean, look at that. He dresses nicely, is an uber sweetheart, and has this small glint in his eye whenever he looks at you. And he sings! He's like your dream man!"

"Well, maybe three years ago he was. Now he's just my friend."

Mercedes leaned back, her jaw dropping slightly. "Is this because of Dave? Because if it is, I thought you moved on."

"It's not about David, Mercedes. It's about me. Before the accident, I thought I had everything planned out but now, I don't know where I'm going. And I got this . . incredible guy trying to help me, and trying to get my life back on track, but I just . . . I can't. There's so much to think about and I just can't deal with going back to that life, when I pretty much lost everything from it."

"Not everything." Mercedes replied brokenly. "Tina and I, we're still here. We all used to be best friends. And we were there for you Kurt. There after the accident and after Dave's parents took him away. And we're still here for you. You just gotta let us in. I mean, what's the point of life if you're not even living?"

Kurt remained silent, staring at his old friend. From day one he's heard the same thing over and over again. He didn't want to fight it, but he couldn't help to. Now there was nothing left to do but listen.

"When did you get so smart?" He smirked softly.

"Shockingly, college has that effect on me." She answered.

Chuckling, Kurt sat up, and asked Mercedes to tell her more about LCC drama program. Once Rachel and Blaine rejoined the two, the three went around, each expressing their favorite and least favorite thing about college. Kurt would laugh from time to time, though he mostly listened; silently pondering what his own college experience would've been like if he had made that journey. After leaving the food court, the four walked around, stopping from shop to shop, and expressed their likes and dislikes on the clothing the shops had to offer.

Blaine watched Kurt intently, smiling as he would slip his opinion in on the outfits. It was only a sentence or two, but it was a hell of a lot more than before. It would only be a certain amount of time until the shell was finally cracked for good and the old Kurt could finally reemerge.

It seemed time passed by for the gang when they overheard the voice over the intercom, telling them to make their final purchase, seeing as the mall would be closing. As they stood outside, preparing to depart, they exchanged sweet words and soft embraces. Mercedes and Kurt took an extra long moment, probably trying to make up for lost time. Rachel's breathe was nearly taken away at the sight of her friend, who not so long ago couldn't stand to hand someone put a hand on his shoulder, now hugging someone with just as much love and care as the one he was hugging.

"You better call me," Mercedes told him as they pulled away. "I'm not letting you go this time."

Kurt chucked softly, glad to see she hadn't changed much. "I will, I will." He swore.

Turning to Blaine, Mercedes gave him a soft, yet determined look. "Take care of him, will ya?"

"Of course." Blaine nodded firmly.

After another embrace and small waves, the groups split and went their separate ways. Kurt and Blaine walked silently through the parking lot, until they were halfway to the car.

"Well, that wasn't so bad, was it?" Blaine half teased. Kurt said nothing, though a smirk danced across his face. "Oh, come on, say it. Say you had a good time. I know you did. I could see it in your eyes the entire time. Come _ooooooon_!"

"Alright! Alright!" Kurt jumped, laughing quietly. "I had a good time. Are you happy now?"

Blaine slid in front of him, closing the gap between the car and Kurt. "I think so. But I think another thing is in order."

"And what would that be?" Kurt questioned, folding his arms across his chest.

"Oh, just a small token of your thanks. You know, nothing big." Blaine stopped there, and slowly turned his face sideways and up, exposing his cheek.

Kurt sighed heavily, knowing exactly what Blaine was doing. Rolling his eyes, Kurt looked around swiftly, finding they were in fact alone, before leaning forward, pressing his lips softly against the cheek for a quick kiss.

"You're pathetic." Kurt told him.

Blaine smiled small, blushing slightly. "I think more of it as being adorably needy."

Pushing his friend aside, Kurt got into the car, and didn't give a second thought about hiding his smirk.

"Ya think next time I could get a little more? Ya know, maybe a two cheek smacker?" Blaine asked.

"If you don't shut up, I'll give you a two cheek smack right now, but I can promise it won't be as sweet as the one I just gave you." Kurt muttered, giving Blaine a sideways look.

"Ooh, I like em bad." Blaine laughed. "Alright, where to next? Maybe we could catch a movie? That Jim Carey film should still be out, the one with the penguins? I love those furry little creatures."

Kurt shook his head as they pulled out of the parking lot. Being friends with Blaine was nothing Kurt expected to be. And yet, that didn't bother Kurt one bit.


End file.
